Data is considered a new resource of the digital economy, and Việt Nam has a massive amount of data from national databases, local data systems, businesses, banks, and financial institutions. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Though Việt Nam has a wealth of data, a true data economy has yet to take shape in the country, with data exploitation remaining very limited, experts say.

Data is considered a new resource of the digital economy and Việt Nam possesses a massive amount of data from national databases, as well as from data systems operated by localities, businesses, banks and financial institutions.

Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Dung, head of the Office of the National Data Association, said the country needed to transform data into a commodity with economic value in order to create an efficiently functioning data market.

Việt Nam has invested heavily in building a national data infrastructure over many years. Currently, the country has numerous large-scale national databases managed by the State, covering key areas such as population, immigration, businesses, finance, health, education, land and social security, creating an important foundation for national digital transformation. In addition, a huge volume of data has been accumulated by corporations, banks and businesses.

According to Dung, from a resource perspective, Việt Nam does not lack data, but many data systems remain dormant and unexploited. The paradox lies in the fact that while data resources are increasingly vast, the ability to use them to create economic value remains very limited. Many databases have been built at considerable cost but lack suitable mechanisms for sharing, connecting and commercialising them.

Việt Nam has had a data market for many years, but mainly in an informal form. The country still lacks a legal and transparent data market where data can be traded as an asset.

Dung believes that to build a data economy, a data industry must first be established. Similar to the development of the rice economy, which requires a rice industry, a data economy also requires an ecosystem of businesses specialising in processing, exploiting and commercialising data.

A survey conducted by the National Data Association and the Data Innovation and Exploitation Centre under the National Data Centre of the Ministry of Public Security among more than 1,000 member organisations and businesses shows that demand for data exploitation is enormous.

According to Dung, the survey results reflect a notable reality: businesses are no longer hesitant about whether to apply artificial intelligence (AI), but are instead seeking ways to access data sources to develop AI applications and solve business problems.

Among the types of data of greatest interest to businesses, traffic data topped the list, followed by financial data, data on small and medium-sized enterprises, health care data, education data, land planning data, environmental data and agricultural data.

Financial data is one of the types of data that businesses pay the greatest interest. VNA/VNS Photo

However, the gap between demand and accessibility remains substantial. Surveys show that data is currently scattered across many agencies. Many ministries and departments have built databases, but businesses find them difficult to access. Data search tools are not user-friendly and do not meet the needs of the private sector.

Another bottleneck is the lack of automated access mechanisms. According to experts, in many developed countries such as the US, South Korea and Singapore, businesses can register and access public data through API interfaces. Meanwhile, this model is still not widespread in Việt Nam.

In addition, businesses face other obstacles, including complex licensing procedures, inconsistent data quality, a lack of interoperability between systems, limitations in the legal framework and high exploitation costs.

According to Dung, these factors explain why a large volume of data exists but has not yet become a resource that supports economic growth.

Notably, more than 50 per cent of surveyed businesses expressed interest in open data. This suggests that market demand for the legal purchase and use of data is significant.

"If we consider data as a commodity, one out of every two businesses surveyed would be willing to buy data from the Government," Dung said.

Data industry

According to the National Data Association, Việt Nam has gradually laid the foundations for a data economy. In terms of institutions, several important legal frameworks have been enacted, including the Data Law, the Law on Personal Data Protection and the Cybersecurity Law. In terms of infrastructure, the National Data Centre is being built, alongside the development of private data centres, cloud computing platforms and security systems.

However, according to Dung, the country is only beginning to lay the groundwork for a data industry, which has yet to truly emerge. Without a data industry, a data economy cannot be formed.

The data industry must encompass a full range of capabilities, from data collection, cleaning, standardisation, labelling, interoperability and metadata construction to data analysis, product development and commercialisation, Dung noted.

“These are the core stages that transform raw data into valuable commodities in the market. Countries with developed data industries, such as the US, South Korea and many European countries, have formed thousands of businesses specialising in providing these services. Meanwhile, in Việt Nam, the number of businesses participating in the stages of the data value chain remains very small,” she said.

Dung said this would be both a significant gap in the digital economy and an opportunity for technology companies and start-ups in the coming period because, as data becomes an input for AI, digital transformation and new business models, demand for data processing and exploitation services is expected to increase sharply. — BIZHUB/VNS