Vietnam strives to have 10 tech “unicorns” by 2030

By APD writer Alice

Hanoi, Aug. 23 (APD) – A draft recently announced by the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment indicates that the country wants to have at least five billion-dollar tech firms (unicorns) by 2025 and 10 by 2030 as planned in its draft on national strategy on the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

According to the draft, the total social investment into research and development (R&D) is expected to account for 1.5 percent of GDP by 2025. Vietnam will be in the top 30 countries in the world in terms of number of patents in the prioritised technology sectors.

In addition, Vietnam targets to have at least five companies by 2025 and 10 firms by 2030 with exports of products and services using Industry 4.0 technologies or next generation such as 5G, Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence and data analysis to G7 countries.

The country wants at least 20 percent of firms to adopt Industry 4.0 by 2025 and 40 percent by 2030.

In prioritised sectors, the rate of businesses applying at least one Industry 4.0 technology will reach 30 percent by 2025 and 50 percent by 2030.

Areas that need to be prioritised in technology transformation are public administration, utilities, healthcare, education, manufacturing, agriculture, logistics, trade, information technology, and finance and banking.

Vietnam needs to rank at least 30th in the Global Innovation Index, it said. The country now ranks 42nd.

To successfully implement the strategy, the draft provides two plans, including renaming the National Steering Committee on economic restructuring and innovating growth model to National Steering Committee for growth and Industry 4.0. It will establish a National Committee on Industry 4.0.

Vietnam is among countries least prepared for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, according to a World Economic Forum report released last year. It ranks low in terms of education, human resources, innovation, and technology – all crucial factors in the revolution – it said.

Regarding economic institutions serving the participation of Industry 4.0, Vietnam's institutional quality is underestimated. Vietnam ranked 94th out of 140 economies on the Institutional Index in the WEF Global Competitiveness Index 4.0 released in 2018.

In terms of technology infrastructure, the country’s 4G foundation has been relatively well developed. In addition, Vietnam has a young and well trained labour force, especially in the information and technology – a foundation for Industry 4.0.

The labour force has been highly valued by global IT firms. They have been an important factor for many Vietnamese IT companies to expand their operations while many foreign businesses have established R&D centres in the country.

However, Vietnam faces a shortage of engineers with management ability.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)