Quang Ninh (VNA) ཧ– Quang Ninh province is working to strongly develop the digital economy and establish itself as a role model in comprehensive digital transformation at the provincial level.

The northeastern province looks to strongly promote the digital economy so as to fuel development, create new growth values for local socio-economic areas, and gradually turn the digital economy into a key player in the gross regional domestic product (GRDP) growth. It is also planning to build a safe and humane digital society based on the pillars of nature, culture, and people. It is striving to become one of the best localities in cyber safety and security nationwide; take the lead in terms of digital transformation among agencies of the Party, State, Vietnam Fatherland Front, and socio-political organisations; and establish itself into a role model in this regard. Among the targets for 2030, Quang Ninh hopes the digital economy will account for about 30 percent of GDRP and labour productivity increase by over 13 percent annually. Besides, it targets 100 percent of the papers at the district and communal levels be handled digitally, 99 percent of the local adults having e-payment accounts, and 90 percent of state agencies’ monitoring and examination activities be conducted in the digital environment and their information systems. It also eyes at least 500 digital businesses by 2030. To that end, the province has set up different tasks and measures, including enhancing Party Committees’ leadership over the issue, improving the state management’s effectiveness, building mechanisms and policies for supporting enterprises to produce and apply digital technology, and cooperating with capable and experienced businesses to develop IT and telecoms infrastructure and personnel. In addition, more support mechanisms will be devised to help local enterprises and households advertise their products on prestigious domestic and foreign e-commerce platforms. Quang Ninh will also step up developing digital data and platforms, ensuring information security in tandem with safeguarding cyber sovereignty, and providing more online public services for people and businesses. The provincial Party Committee on February 5 issued a resolution on comprehensive digital transformation by 2025 with a vision to 2030. At a recent teleconference, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Pham Van Thanh requested digital transformation be ramped up in all fields this year, firstly in health care, education, industry, tourism, transport, and logistics. He demanded focuses be identified for the process, asking departments, sectors, and localities to make strong moves in this regard. He pointed out the need to increase communications to change the mindset and actions of the entire political system, as well as local people and businesses. Besides, it is also necessary to include digital transformation targets and tasks in the resolutions, strategies, action plans, targets, and tasks on socio-economic development of all-level administrations and sectors. Quang Ninh ranked fourth among the country's 63 provinces and cities in the 2020 Digital Transformation Index rankings, released last October, following Da Nang city and the provinces of Thua Thien-Hue and Bac Ninh. According to Deputy Minister of Information and Telecommunications Nguyen Huy Dung, digital transformation saw a remarkable progress last year, with awareness of this issue among State agencies, businesses, and people significantly improving. Digital transformation has become a trend in the wake of COVID-19, Dung said, adding it is a new engine driving the country’s socio-economic development and facilitating pandemic response and economic recovery. Digital technology has found its way into every governmental, economic and social activity, he noted. In June 2020, the Prime Minister approved the national digital transformation programme by 2025 with a vision to 2030, which targets that by 2025, the digital economy will make up 20 percent of Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP) and at least 10 percent of each sector./.