Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Vuong Dinh Hue requested the local authorities to fine-tune telecom development planning, a key move to help attract investors in information technology (IT) and telecommunications.

Overview of the meeting. Source: Thanh Hai.

Vietnam’s telecommunication industry recorded strong growth of 30 – 50% annually, which could go up even higher thanks to the presence of e-commerce, Hue said at a meeting on April 9.

Strategies and planning are key issues for the development of the sector, said Hue, expecting Hanoi’s Department of Information and Communications to draw up annual plans to attract more investment in the IT and telecoms sectors.

“In addition to the establishment of e-government, the department should focus on realizing IT and telecoms development planning,” Hue said.

The development of the IT industry would lay a foundation for other sectors to grow as telecommunications and postal sectors help ensure efficient state management in all spheres, Hue stressed.

Despite being a significant industry, the growth of telecommunication and postal sectors in Hanoi is lagging behind the pace of other countries.

Director of the municipal Department of Information and Communications Nguyen Ngoc Ky said over the past years, the city has focused on investing in IT infrastructure development, resulting in an extensive coverage of the fourth generation (4G) mobile network in the city.

A number of tourist attractions and public places in Hanoi are now provided with free Wi-Fi for the convenience of the local people and tourists, said Ky.

Regarding the postal sector, Vice Director of the department Nguyen Xuan Quang said Hanoi has 303 postal companies at small and medium sizes. The sector outlook remains promising thanks to the advancement of technologies and growing demand from online shopping.

Quang informed Vietnam’s major mobile carriers of Viettel and VNPT are taking part in the e-government project of Hanoi while the city is piloting the implementation of the fifth generation (5G) mobile network.