[Vnbiz] ICT Stats in Vietnam Internet

[Craig Stevenson]

*Some issues when start to collect ICT indicators in Vietnam*

Geneva 8-10 September 2003

Nguyen Duc Thang

    General Statistics Office of *Vietnam*






*Introduction*

   - Current situation of *e-commerce* development in *Vietnam*.
      - At the present, *e-commerce* has been applied in various
      forms.
      - The initiative of *e-commerce* in *Vietnam* has just been
      embarked, at the first step.
   - In general, *e-commerce* in *Vietnam* has not yet been applied
   broadly and fully and GSO has some difficulties when start collecting ICT
   indicators as follow:







*A. Subjective causes*

   - Framework of organization of GSO
      - Up to now, GSO has not got a section, which responsible for
      collecting and processing ICT indicators.
      - GSO has submitted an Odirnance on a change of framework of
      organization to Primer Minister.







*Subjective causes (continuous)*

   - Lacking of the document concerning to methodology
   - Building up the ICT indicators system.







*Subjective causes **(continuous)*

   - Lacking of computers for statistical staff on some provinces/cities.

   - Up to now, we have got about 50 percent of 61 Provincial Statistics
   Offices which in common use local area network (LAN).







*B. Objective causes*

   - Some problems are not only impact to applying, developing *
   e-commerce* but also to collecting ICT indicators in Vietnamas follow:







*1. Awareness of the people on e-commerce*

   - Today, the majority of Vietnamese, have not yet had a complete
   awareness on *e-commerce*.
   - The proportion of internet subscribers (compared to the population)
   is much less than that in the regional countries.







*Awareness of the people on e-commerce* (continuos)

   - The reasons are low skill of using information technology applicants
   and knowledge of English, low income affects to the ones' demand or lack of
   security when taking part in *e-commerce*
   - Working manner and in general and purchasing habit in particular,
   are still under traditional* *form







*2. Human resources for e-commerce*

   - The informative workforce of *Vietnam* has not yet satisfied the
   demand on the domestic software market.
   - The majority of employee and people have not yet had sufficient
   skills to work and do business on the internet and with other modern
   equipment.
   - Weakness in English, the principle language on the internet, is also
   an obstacle to actively doing *e-commerce**.*







*3. Information and communication    technology infrastructure*

    - The information and communication network of *Vietnam* has not yet
      satisfied the demand for quickly having access to the internet
of consumers
      and businesses.
      - Internet access cost is rather high compared to income of the
      majority of people.
      - The quality of telecommunication services, especially the
      quality of internet services, also influences the implement and
development
      of *e-commerce*.







*3. Information and communication technology infrastructure *(continuos)

    - Hardware equipment mainly is imported.
      - Some of 100% foreign-invested enterprises manufactured and
      exported printing circuits for information equipment,  however
the imported
      materials reached to 90%.







*4. Legislation infrastructure*

    - *Vietnam* has not yet issued any legal texts stipulating in detail
      about *e-commerce*. This is a big barrier to the development of
      *e-commerce* in *Vietnam*.



    - The Ordinance on *E-commerce* is under drafting process.







*5. Electronic payment*

    - Electronic payment system of *Vietnam* commercial banks has not yet
      developed sufficiently to satisfy requirements of *e-commerce*.



    - Legal texts related to tax, accounting and statistics management
      didn't accept invoices in electronic form of enterprises.







*6. Electronic payment *(continuos)

    - *Vietnam* commercial banks have not yet focussed on investment in
      research and development of electronic banking system
      - The usage of credit cards, payment cards, smart cards is
      limited to a narrow sphere, is now being experimented and has
not yet become
      overall measures with respect to each bank*.*







*7. Consumer protection*

   - Recent years *Vietnam* has had many efforts in drafting and
   approving legal texts related to consumer protection.  However, due to the
   context that *e-commerce* has not yet taken shape in *Vietnam*, all
   the above  legal texts didn't reflect protection of consumer rights in
   *e-commerce*.







*8.  Information security
*

   - At present, security technology applied in commerce has not yet
   developed in *Vietnam*.



   - To encourage people to participate in *e-commerce* activities, *
   Vietnam* should quickly resolve the problems related to information
   security for *e-commerce*.







*Some ICT indicators are collected in co-ordination with other census by GSO
*

   - The Agriculture, Forest and Aquiculture census 2001, the
   Establishment Census 2002.
   - Result of some indicators as follow:
       - Number of Establishments: 2,9 million, of which:
         - Enterprises 2.2 %
         - Branch of enterprises 1.7%
         - Business household: 90.2%
         - Administrative Unit: 5.9%







*Result of some indicators (continuous)*

   - Rate of employee use computer compare to total: 7.84%
   - Rate of establishment using computer: 3.1%
   - Rate of establishment have access to the Internet: 0.76%
   - Rate of establishment have Website: 0.09%
   - Rate of establishment have used *e-commerce*: 0.14%







*C. Recommendation of GSO to the International Organization for support and
assistance*

   - Expert for consulting of building up the ICT indicators system.
   - Financial supports for organizing workshops, seminar and training on
   collecting ICT indicators.
   - Equipment supports for statistical staff.
   - Financial supports for organizing a pilot survey on collecting ICT
   indicators.
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