Illustrative photo. Việt Nam sets a goal of making the digital economy account for 20 per cent of the country’s GDP by 2025. — Photo cafef.vn

HÀ NỘI — The goal for the digital economy to account for 20 per cent of GDP by 2025 is very challenging. 

However, Nguyễn Trọng Đường, Deputy Director of the Department of Enterprise Management, Ministry of Information and Communications, believes that with a breakthrough scenario, the Vietnamese digital economy could account for 26.2 per cent of GDP in 2025.

Under the normal development scenario, the Vietnamese digital economy will only reach 10.5 per cent of GDP by 2025.

To achieve this goal, it was necessary to maintain the average annual growth of the digital economy at about 20 per cent, three times higher than the expected GDP growth at 6.5-7 per cent per year, he said.

Based on the analysis and assessment of digital economy development, three development scenarios could be proposed for the Vietnamese digital economy by 2025, said Đường.

In the normal scenario, with only average efforts for digital transformation and digital economy development, the digital economy will account for about 10.4 per cent of GDP by 2025, of which ICT, telecommunications and the internet economy account for about 7.9 per cent of GDP.

In the quicker scenario in which digital transformation and development of the digital economy are strongly promoted, the digital economy will account for about 19.9 per cent ​​of GDP by 2025, of which ICT, telecommunications and the internet economy account for about 13.1 per cent.

In the breakthrough scenario, digital transformation and digital economy development are strongly deployed, accompanied by measures to ensure a market balance between Vietnamese digital enterprises and foreign counterparts. At the same time, with policies to support Vietnamese technology start-ups, the digital economy will account for about 26.2 per cent of GDP by 2025, of which ICT, telecommunications and the internet economy account for about 16 per cent.

Đường said that first, it was necessary to quickly develop and promulgate national strategies and programmes on developing the digital economy and digital society.

Second, it was necessary to urgently review, amend and supplement legal regulations to improve the legal framework, mechanisms and policies for the development of the digital economy and digital society.

Third, it is necessary to accelerate the implementation of the national digital transformation programme, especially solutions for skills training and digital human resources development; digital transformation; and the domestic digital market. — VNS