Vice Chairman Vo Van Hoan of the municipal People's Committee emphasized this to reporters of SGGP Newspaper about digital transformation work in the past time.
Vice Chairman Vo Van Hoan stated that the key focus for Ho Chi Minh City in 2024 will be the effective implementation of the National Assembly’s Digital Transformation and Resolution No. 98/2023/QH15. This has been the primary directive and area of emphasis for the municipal People's Committee since the start of the year.
Digital transformation efforts concentrate on the simultaneous management of four distinct categories of tasks. These include the generation and utilization of digital data to enhance consulting, facilitate decision-making, and elevate the quality of public service delivery as well as the operation and advancement of digital platforms aimed at delivering public services, particularly in the realm of online public administration for city dwellers and enterprises.
Moreover, the government should implement policies such as waiving fees for 121 administrative procedures across five service categories, as well as promoting the adoption of digital signatures and online payments to encourage the use of online public services.
Plus, the southern largest city is providing training to enhance the digital skills of government officials, civil servants, and community digital transformation groups to support its digital transformation goals. As a key initiative, the city has established the Ho Chi Minh City Digital Transformation Center, an important tool for realizing its vision of becoming a smart, digitally-enabled city.
In recent years, the Digital Transformation Program has yielded significant outcomes, with Ho Chi Minh City's Digital Transformation Index (DTI) consistently placing among the top five provinces and cities, advancing from 5th position in 2020 to 2nd in 2022. Notably, Ho Chi Minh City is the sole locality in the nation to be honored with the ASOCIO Award in Korea for Excellent Digital Government in 2023.
Furthermore, in 2024, as reported by the United Nations e-Government survey, Ho Chi Minh City has further enhanced its standing in the Local Online Services Index (LOSI), achieving a rank of 53 out of 152 cities surveyed. The city's LOSI index in 2024 reflects a 1.2 percent increase in value compared to 2022 and a remarkable 58.85 percent increase compared to 2020.
Furthermore, the integration and data sharing between central systems and the city, as well as among the city, districts, wards are not functioning smoothly or cohesively. This situation adversely impacts the execution of online administrative procedures for both citizens and businesses, as well as the resolution of official matters.
Additionally, there is a need to enhance awareness and encourage the public to utilize the city's online public services more effectively. He also mentioned that Ho Chi Minh City will continue to leverage the outcomes of the Administrative Reform Index (Par Index) and the DTI Index of various departments and agencies as critical metrics for assessing the performance of organizational leaders.
HCMC persistently advocates for government and ministerial support in the integration and connection of information systems and data sharing. This initiative aims to ensure that citizens and businesses need only provide information once when accessing public services, while officials will utilize a single system to process administrative procedures for the public and enterprises.
Additionally, the effective implementation of community digital technology teams at the local level (comprising 2,620 teams and 11,059 members) is essential for enhancing digital skills among residents, facilitating their transition to digital services, particularly in guiding and assisting them with online public services and electronic payments.
At the city People's Committee's regular September socio-economic meeting, Secretary Nguyen Van Nen of the municipal Party Committee commended the city government's progress in implementing digital transformation, highlighting its efforts to improve the quality of public service. This includes the LOSI index, which has been selected by the United Nations to assess and contribute to the development of e-government.
HCMC has also inaugurated the Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, established the Center for Public Administrative Services, and initiated various other activities. Secretary Nguyen Van Nen further urged the city government to continue advancing digital governance, fostering a digital economy, and promoting a digital society to implement the city's strategies for a digital economy, circular economy, and green economy. This endeavor aims to further enhance the quality of services provided to citizens and businesses.
Ho Chi Minh City has been transitioning its government operations into a digital environment. The city aims to have all administrative activities conducted through digital platforms by 2025.
However, Vice Chairman Vo Van Hoan indicated that certain leaders within various units do not regard digital transformation as a fundamental aspect of their leadership and management responsibilities, resulting in insufficient time being allocated to this initiative.
