Experts from leading domestic and international businesses are giving their insights into how their companies are supporting Vietnam’s endeavour.

Hiroshi Hiramoto - General director Jag Kokusai Vietnam Co., Ltd.

We are providing services in reusable energies as a power plant operator, geospatial information systems, and the forestry business in Asian countries, while planning to intensify business with Vietnamese partners based on our 70-year experience.

Our tech, like satellite data analysis or cloud database service, are already based on Industry 4.0.

Industry 4.0 is a continuous change. So, businesses can apply it gradually and make it sophisticated. In my opinion, Vietnam is in an advantageous position to enjoy the benefits. The country is in a phase of adapting advanced technologies, meaning creating and enhancing the value of services, with lots of talented young people. Ventures and startups will play an important role to make the benefit even bigger. It will lead to a change from qualitative growth to quantitative growth and will contribute to a 10-fold increase of GDP. We hope to enjoy the benefits together with Vietnam.

I think that the Vietnamese government’s role in this situation is also important to provide a favourable environment to enhance the nation’s motivation and efficiency.

Arnold Tijdens - Founder, managing director Kilimo Finance

Kilimo Finance is a lending platform which connects farmers with financial institutions. We aim to provide affordable loans to farmers and small and medium agricultural enterprises through digital channels funded by local banks. As for Industry 4.0 applications, we make use of AI and big data to score the farmer’s credit worthiness. I believe Vietnam is fully aware of the potential Industry 4.0 tech offers its local economy and workforce. We are just at the beginning, so it is important to find the right use cases in Vietnam’s economy which can be optimised with the support of these technologies. Furthermore, we need to make sure the startup scene in Vietnam plays a prominent role in solving existing issues through creating an entire eco-system around Industry 4.0 technologies, including mentors, venture capitalists, and others.

Agriculture and finance offer big opportunities, but those still need to be adopted in order to be successful.

Sridharan Nair - Territory Senior Partner PwC Malaysia and Vietnam

The Vietnamese government has set some ambitious targets, in which the digital economy will contribute 20 per cent to the total GDP by 2025. This will increase to 30 per cent by 2030. Also, by the same time, internet penetration and 5G should be operating across the whole country. I think this vision and policy are a good point to start.

Vietnam should pay attention to three things. First, there should be detailed policies and reforms, so that we can support and achieve these objectives.

Second, it is important to ensure that the private sector will be partners with the government and with the public sector.

Third, Vietnam should be a trusted place to do business for domestic and foreign investors. Over the years, the local authorities have been putting many efforts in trying to enhance the level of governance in Vietnam, whether it is in the public or private sector. A combination of this will give a conducive business environment.

Phan Thanh Son - Deputy general director Techcombank

With Industry 4.0 driving digital transformation in all sectors, including the banking sector, Techcombank is promoting technology applications in the operation. 2019 marks the second phase of our digital transformation.

The digital banking channel of Techcombank has continued to show impressive growth with the volume of transactions increasing 20-fold in the past three years.

We will continue to develop a ­customer-centric business model, focusing on six major economic sectors which make up 48 per cent of Vietnam’s GDP, and more importantly cover the majority of Vietnamese demands, from long-term demands such as housing and automobiles to daily ones such as consumer payments, food, travel, and retail. Furthermore, we will further develop digital banking and human resources in order to go faster. As one of Vietnam’s leading commercial banks, we are eager to support the country on its digital transformation.

Vo Son - Deputy general director F.L.D Vietnam Co., Ltd

Digital transformation provides immense opportunities for Vietnamese firms to approach and develop more rapidly to keep up with the world. Our company has recognised the benefits of innovative Industry 4.0 technologies and the digital transformation, so we made efforts to avail of these advanced technologies’ benefits for a couple of years now. For instance, we are using state-of-the-art seamless technology in our production to ensure high and consistent product quality.

We aim to approach more international customers for new project developments. We will further invest in buying modern machines from Italy for our market expansion. This also provides opportunities to increase international transactions to generate more profits for the company.

We have succeeded in expanding our exports to markets in Europe, the US, Japan, and Canada, and are working with partners from different countries.

Tran Anh Tuan - Chairman, general director Dong Quang Group

Our company engages in diverse business fields, from trading household electrical appliances and ICT products to cosmetics and providing outsourcing services to foreign digital companies. We have been promoting the latter for about eight months now and have noted encouraging results.

Besides constant learning, it is important to broaden practical experiences in the process of digitalisation. As such, the company’s management often takes part in foreign exhibitions and events. For example, later this month we will attend a big event in South Korea to keep up with the latest global trends in our fields.

To drive digital applications at our company, we are focusing on upskilling our workforce, who will handle outsourcing contracts from local and foreign business partners. If things go smoothly, this new business will become a spearhead in our future development.

Tech workforce is now badly needed in both domestic and global markets. Luckily, the Vietnamese labour force is tech-savvy and agile. It is important for companies to accumulate experience and gradually scale up, and we are not an exception. VIR

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