Vietnam ICT: Top 10 in 2010

The top ten information and communication (ICT) events ranked by the Ministry of Information and Communication for 2010 are as follows:

1. The project named “Developing Vietnam into a powerful ICT country” approved by the Prime Minister on September 22 focused on development of IT human resources, broadband infrastructure and IT application. The project is expected to create ICT breakthroughs for Vietnam in the future.

2. Law on Post and Telecommunication, approved at the 7th session of the 12th National Assembly on June 28, will take effect from January 1, 2011. It includes 10 chapters, 46 regulations on rights and duties of organisations and individuals as well as state management in post and telecommunication activities.

3. The 8th session of the 12th National Assembly passed a national programme named “Bringing information to remote, mountainous, island and border areas” on November 10, aiming to narrow the gap in information access among different regions. The programme will be carried out in 3,000 communes of 250 districts from 2011-2015, with priority given to 1,700 remote communes. The progrmame will assist ICT personnel training, regular operations of ICT systems and supply of audio-visual equipment for families in disadvantaged districts.

4. Telecommunication businesses were among the top Vietnamese firms in corporate tax payment. According to the list of the 1,000 largest corporate income tax payers in the country, Vietnam Mobile Telecom Services Company (Mobifone) ranked first with nearly VND6 trillion (USD300 million), followed by military-run Viettel Group (Viettel). In 2010, Vietnam’s post and telecom businesses saw an increase of 57.2% in revenues and 20.8% in tax payment against last year.

5. The Ministry of Information and Communication and concerned agencies nationwide have implemented many strict measures to further control online games, including enhancing inspection over online game services and particularly punishment application in necessary cases. The ministry has also asked businesses to boost online games with healthy content and join communication campaigns to help raise the social awareness of online games. Also in 2010, the Vietnam Internet Association is established on June 23.

6. Information security is identified as vital and urgent to organisations and enterprises.
On November 23, for the first time, the Ministry of Information and Communication announced messages from the Vietnam Information Security Day with the theme "Digital Information Security National Plan - A road ahead”. This is an activity to raise the social awareness of information security and promote IT security application.

7. The third Vietnam International Book Fair, held in Hanoi September 17-21, was among activities to mark the 1,000 year anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi. This was the largest event of its kind ever held in Vietnam with over 230 stalls holding millions of books and documents on Thang Long-Hanoi, Late President Ho Chi Minh and the Vietnamese Communist Party.

8. The first ASEAN Photo and Documentary Festival 2010 was held in Vietnam with the theme “ASEAN countries and people”. The event attracted the work of nearly 7,000 photographers, reporters of press agencies and film producers from regional nations.

9. Vietnam’s press fair took place in Paris on February 27, the first event of its kind. It drew 680 press works from over 400 Vietnamese agencies. This marked new progress for the Vietnamese communication sector in the global integration.

10. Vietnam won the first prize at the 39th Universal Postal Union (UPU) International Letter-Writing Competition. This is the first time Vietnam has taken first prize in the contest after 20 years of competing. The letter of Ho Thi Hieu Hien, a 6th year pupil at Tay Son secondary school in Da Nang City’s Hai Chau district, was sent to stage director Truong Nghe Muu, to express his wishes for more films on HIV/AIDS so people can better understand the dangers of the disease and improve their knowledge of how to prevent it.