Transaction activities at the Bắc Giang City's Reception and Result Processing Department. Photos courtesy of Bắc Giang Province

BẮC GIANG — Bắc Giang is accelerating the development of digital government, economy, and society to drive local socio-economic growth, according to Trần Minh Chiêu, Director of the provincial Department of Information and Communications.

In implementing the Politburo’s Resolution No. 57 on breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation, and national digital transformation, Bắc Giang has prioritised the expansion of telecommunications and IT infrastructure to enhance e-government operations and smart urban services.

The province is also broadening access to fully online public services to improve satisfaction among residents and businesses. Telecommunications enterprises have been instructed to upgrade 4G networks and develop 5G infrastructure to strengthen connectivity.

Additionally, Bắc Giang is building sectoral databases and promoting digital transformation in industrial enterprises. Plans are underway to support the registration and establishment of new digital technology businesses, simplifying market entry for tech firms, Chiêu noted.

Residents completing administrative procedures at the Bắc Giang Provincial Public Administration Centre.

In the coming period, Bắc Giang will implement measures to enhance information security for approved systems while maintaining and managing the SOC monitoring centre to promptly detect and address cybersecurity incidents, Director of the provincial Department of Information and Communications Trần Minh Chiêu has said.

The province is also strengthening policy communication, particularly raising awareness among social media users about the requirement to verify personal accounts, in accordance with the Government’s Decree No. 147/2024/NĐ-CP, issued on November 9, 2024.

Additionally, Bắc Giang is improving the quality of human resources responsible for monitoring and handling harmful online content, contributing to a safer and more transparent digital environment.

In recent years, the province has actively pursued digital transformation, leveraging information technology to enhance governance and public services.

Since the implementation of Resolution No. 111-NQ/TU by the Bắc Giang Provincial Party Committee on digital transformation for the 2021–2025 period, with a vision toward 2030, the province has made significant progress.

Bắc Giang’s Digital Transformation Index (DTI) has consistently ranked among the top 10 localities nationwide, placing 10th out of 63 in 2020–2021 and rising to 9th in 2022.

Notably, the province has led the country in the "E-Government and Digital Government Development" category of the Public Administration Reform Index for four consecutive years. It also ranked third in the Citizen Satisfaction Index for administrative procedures and secured fourth place in the overall Public Administration Reform Index (PAR Index) for two consecutive years (2022–2023).

To support digital connectivity, the provincial Department of Information and Communications has collaborated with telecommunications providers to facilitate the transition from 2G to 4G, upgrading 169,392 mobile subscribers and assisting 22,492 smartphone users.

A resident receiving assistance with administrative procedures at the Bắc Giang Provincial Public Administration Centre.

Infrastructure improvements have also delivered impressive results, with 937.64 km of cables either buried underground or neatly rearranged. Mobile networks and fibre-optic internet now cover 100 per cent of villages and residential areas in the province.

Smartphone adoption has surpassed 85 per cent among adults, with over 90 per cent of households having at least one smartphone user. Additionally, 86.3 per cent of households are connected to fibre-optic internet.

The province recorded a total of 1.93 million mobile subscribers and 1.78 million internet subscribers. In 2024, revenue from the postal and telecommunications sector was estimated at VNĐ2.84 trillion, marking a 3.5 per cent increase from 2023.

Bắc Giang has successfully deployed several critical digital platforms, including a data integration and sharing platform, the Smart City Operations Centre (IOC), the Cybersecurity Monitoring Centre (SOC), the Provincial Digital Data Warehouse, the Administrative Procedures Information System, the Document and Workflow Management System, the Provincial Web Portal, and the Provincial E-Gazette.

To enhance security and surveillance, a facial recognition camera system has been installed at 1,300 locations across the province.

Residents conducting transactions at the Bắc Giang Provincial Public Administration Centre.

Furthermore, Bắc Giang is among the pioneering provinces integrating its administrative procedures information system with the national population database (VNeID) for issuing civil status and judicial record certificates.

Currently, Bắc Giang is home to 1,575 IT and electronics enterprises, including 572 hardware manufacturers, 831 distributors, 53 software companies, and 119 other service providers.

In 2024, the total revenue from the IT sector is projected to reach more than VNĐ503.2 trillion (a 24.64 per cent increase), with exports valued at US$6.79 billion (a 24.3 per cent increase), contributing approximately VNĐ2.52 trillion to the State budget.

Major corporations such as Luxshare-ICT, New Wing Interconnect Technology, and JA Solar Technology have been actively investing in IT infrastructure and digital transformation in the province.

Currently, Bắc Giang has established Digital Community Groups in 100 per cent of villages, hamlets and residential areas. The province has also merged these groups with Project 06 teams to enhance operational efficiency and guide residents in utilising digital services.

As of now, the province has approved security classification for 100 per cent of its information systems. It has also implemented a four-layer Security Operations Centre (SOC) model, ensuring around-the-clock monitoring of provincial information systems, which are connected to the National Cybersecurity Monitoring Centre.

Additionally, 1,000 licensed anti-malware programmes have been installed on servers and workstations across all administrative levels. In 2024 alone, the monitoring system recorded 20,988 security alerts and promptly addressed 997 cybersecurity incidents.

Enhancing the digitalisation of public services improves the citizen experience.

At the electronic one-stop service centre of the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment, located at the Provincial Public Administration Centre, Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Hà from the Investment and Development Commercial Joint Stock Bank (BIDV) in Bắc Giang branch, shared her experience: “I find that the digital transformation initiative has significantly reduced processing times. The digitalisation of administrative procedures is truly beneficial, especially for businesses like ours, as it greatly minimises travel time."

Đỗ Văn Ninh, Director of the provincial Land Fund Development and Archives Centre under the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, stated that securing the top position in digital transformation across the province for two consecutive years (2023 and 2024) reflects the centre’s commitment to aligning with the policies and directives of the Provincial Party Committee, People's Committee, and department leadership.

“We have actively reviewed key pillars of digital transformation, including e-government, the digital economy, and database development, particularly in natural resources and environment data,” he said.

“In 2024, under the department's strong leadership, we undertook the complete digitisation of administrative records for citizens and businesses. To achieve this, our team has worked tirelessly, scanning and digitising documents day and night, including weekends, with a strong dedication to building a comprehensive and diverse environmental and resource database”.

Trần Quang Hưng from Bắc Giang City's Reception and Result Processing Department emphasised the efforts to streamline administrative services: “We have fully digitised the input components of citizens' records while also guiding them in submitting applications online, registering accounts on the provincial public service portal, and making digital payments via the national e-government service portal. As a result, 100 per cent of records have been digitised from submission to completion, ensuring maximum convenience for citizens in their transactions.” — VNS