On November, 23, in Hanoi, the Ministry of Information and Communications of Vietnam, United States Department of Commerce and the US Embassy in Vietnam jointly organized a seminar on smart cities infrastructure development. Deputy Minister of Information and Communications of Vietnam Nguyen Thanh Hung and United States Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius co-chaired the seminar.
Speaking at the seminar, Deputy Minister Nguyen Thanh Hung said that the construction and development of intelligent cities (smart cities) is becoming a hot topic in the world and in Vietnam in recent years. It is the powerful development of the urbanization with population growth together with aging population status, environmental challenges, budget cuts, healthcare requirements, sustainable development, etc. All these challenges have created pressure on the process of urbanization towards the “smart” solution. One of the important factors for this process is ICT.
From early 2016, the Ministry has promoted international cooperation in experiential learning to develop advanced urban building suitable with Vietnam. A number of localities across the country including Hanoi, Hue, Lam Dong, Ho Chi Minh City, Quang Ninh, Vinh Phuc, Bac Ninh... start on the development and approval of projects and plans on smart cities development.
Deputy Minister hopes that representatives of Vietnam and the United States actively shared experiences on smart cities development.
Sharing the view of Deputy Minister Nguyen Thanh Hung, Ambassador Ted Osius said, even the developed economies were now facing the challenge of building smart cities, and the smart technologies would help the government solve problems of urban areas in the present and the future.
In addition, the development of smart cities also have a direct impact on the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit of a whole society. Smart City will become the center of innovation in the future.
Ambassador assessed the seminar was a way to connect US businesses in the fields of information security, e-health,… with Vietnam counterparts to promote investment and business activities in the field of smart cities in Vietnam.