Around 4.5 million Vietnamese people are living, working, and studying in over 100 countries and territories around the world, contributing $16 billion in remittances to the country last year. With added global experience and knowledge, overseas Vietnamese devote much for their home nation’s prosperity. 

Many overseas Vietnamese people return home country with valuable know-how

Having been living in Australia for years, Nguyen Ky Tai always thinks of his native land, Vietnam, and of ways to modernise the country’s backward agriculture.

He is the vice-chancellor’s research fellow at the University of Southern Queensland, and is now involved in agricultural research. 

Recently, he was one of 100 overseas Vietnamese intellectuals and scientists who were invited to write recommendations on Industry 4.0, contributing to the development of his home country. 

Tai was deeply touched when learning that other overseas scientists’ ideas were sought by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. 

“I was surprised to have the chance to return and express my own ideas to domestic and overseas Vietnamese scientists. As Vietnamese, we all want to do something for the country,” he told VIR.

Since last August, Tai has come back to Vietnam three times to build a new network in the agricultural sector to apply new technologies from Australia. 

“We can use Artificial Intelligence to optimise and calculate the amount of water and fertiliser to achieve the highest productivity in changing climatic conditions,” Tai added.

Currently, he is negotiating to transfer this technology to Vietnam at a low cost.

Tai is just one of many overseas Vietnamese people who have been making contributions to Vietnam via their brainpower and money.

 Along with their natural feelings for their homeland, they bring a great deal of enthusiasm and experience to make Vietnam richer, more civilised, and more beautiful. Many of them have even returned to the country to make bigger contributions.

After over two decades working for huge brands in North America, Nguyen Thanh My returned to Vietnam in 2004 to establish My Lan Group. So far, he has invested about $50 million into eight enterprises, providing jobs for over 800 workers.

Focusing on studying, manufacturing, and technology transfer in the field of material and equipment for the printing industry, My Lan accounts for over 60 per cent of the Vietnamese market and exports to over 50 countries in terms of computer-to-plate offset.

Furthermore, the company has invested $5 million to build a modern factory and production line for smart fertiliser with environmentally-friendly materials and production. 

In 2018, My Lan’s total revenue was over $20 million. “I want to devote the rest of my life to building smart agriculture which suits the conditions of our country. Technology is a big chance to develop the economy in the context of climate change,” he said.

Meanwhile, Quy Vo-Reinhard, co-founder and chief data officer at Health Information Traceability, decided to invest in healthcare in Vietnam last year. 

“So far, we have invested a five-figure amount in dollars. Vietnam’s population is big – if 100 per cent of the Swiss population participate in blockchain, that number is still smaller than Ho Chi Minh City’s population,” she said.

She told VIR that in Vietnam, high- and medium-ranked leaders understand the potential of the technology, which can be applied in many different sectors in service of socio-economic development.

Wishing to bring more solutions to Vietnam, Quy has been working with hospitals in Hanoi and is planning to co-operate with Ho Chi Minh City to implement the programme.

VIR

Phuong Hao