Deputy Minister of Information and Communication Nguyen Minh Hong made this statement at an annual ICT market and technology outlook conference in HCM City on August 29.

“The ministry has asked the Government for more support for the industry to boost economic growth.” said Hong.

The Government also encourages public-private partnerships and could buy all ICT services from companies, he added.

Last year the country’s ICT turnover topped US$13.7 billion, a whopping 79 percent increase year-on-year, with hardware accounting for US$11.3 billion.

Software and digital content growth was not as high as in previous years, but still managed respectable 10 and 25 percent rates.

“Total exports of computers, electronic products and components, and telecom equipment were worth over US$10.9 billion, a year-on-year growth rate of 92.2 percent,” Nguyen Trong Duong, head of the ministry’s ICT department said.

‘It was also the first time there was a surplus of exports, with exports being US$428 million higher than imports.’

ICT use in governance has continued to increase. Most ministries, other administrative agencies, and provinces have electronic portals, enabling people to access data anytime, anywhere.

More than 100,000 public services are available online, with more, like e-passport, and tax payments to follow soon.

But a big concern is information security, with the average rate of hacker recognition relating to some simple forms being only 16.8 percent. It was 36.2 percent for more complex forms and 14.4 percent for efficiency deterioration attacks and service denial attacks.

The average rate use of information security solutions was 25.3 percent in 2011.

“Information security management has been improved but application rates and human resources remained limited,” Duong explained.

ICT training continued to expand with 290 universities and colleges offering ICT (13 more than in 2010) courses to nearly 65,000 students.

At the conference, Chu Tien Dung, chairman of the HCM City Computer Association (HCA), presented the results of a survey of 256 ICT enterprises that accounted for 85 percent of total business.

It said software exports remained important because the domestic market had not expanded much, and the role of high-tech parks was very important for such exports.

Dung said only 20 percent of hardware companies broke even, marking average profits of around 3 percent.

There were few products and services based on new technologies, tablets, and smart phones and open source code, he said.

“ICT firms contribute 18 percent of HCM City’s GDP and authorities should invest more to boost this key industry, especially by providing more funds.

‘Hardware and electronics firms should move towards tablets and smart phones.’