Laos, Vietnam strengthen digitalisation development

Using smartphone while driving. Photo by digitaltrends.com. Sketched by the Pan Pacific Agency.

VIENTIANE, Sep 3, 2021, Vientiane Times/Asia News Network. Laos and Vietnam have agreed to strengthen their cooperation in the field of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and foster further development in digitalisation, The Star reported.

An agreement was signed on Wednesday (Sept 1) during an online meeting between Minister of Technology and Communications Prof Dr Boviengkham Vongdara and Vietnam’s Minister of Information and Communications, Nguyen Manh Hung.

The two sides will work together in the fields of postal services, telecommunications, Internet, frequency allocation, satellite orbits, digital government, information security, digital transformation, and innovative digital technologies.

Training of personnel will also take place to build capacity in digital development. In the past, the two ministries have shared in a number of projects such as ICT training to help upgrade both bachelor and master’s degrees.

They have also provided training for teachers and ICT staff on topics such as frequency management, Internet code management, and internet security. The two ministries also called for further cooperation between the private sectors of Laos and Vietnam.

Officials recommended setting up a technology entrepreneurial society for start-up businesses with the potential to partner in the areas agreed to in the Memorandum of Understanding based on the principles of mutual assistance, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation.

The agreement was signed as preparations are underway to celebrate the Year of Solidarity in 2022, the 60th anniversary of Laos-Vietnam diplomatic relations and the 45th anniversary of the signing of the Laos-Vietnam Friendship and Cooperation Treaty.

The E-Government Centre of the Ministry of Technology and Communications, together with Vietnam’s Star Telecom (Unitel) recently entered into an agreement to expedite the government’s use of digital technology.

Their partnership will drive development in this field and enable the modernisation of services through improved e-government.

This will further the process of digital transformation and the development of a modern state administration on a par with others in the region.

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