Da Nang works to make IT spearhead sector

Da Nang is one of the leading localities in the country in developing IT and software industry.

Statistics from the municipal Department of Information and Communications, about 20,000 people are working in Da Nang’s IT sector, significantly contributing to promoting the development of software technology in the city. 

Many international training programmes with high quality have been implemented in Da Nang, meeting the demand of domestic and foreign software firms. 

Notably, Da Nang University has cooperated with Washington and Portland Universities of the US, Grenoble and Marseille Universities of France in training Digital System, Embedded System, automated production and automation, software engineering and industrial computing. 

Duy Tan University has set up training linkup with Carnegie Mellon University in the US. Meanwhile, the Vietnam-Korea Friendship Information Technology College has also collaborated with IT partners from Japan and the Republic of Korea to develop training courses in the field. 

A number of cooperation agreements on IT training have been signed between the international programmer training centres NIIT and Softech-Aptech and Indian companies. 

Da Nang is now home to nearly 700 IT enterprises, mainly specialising in software producing and outsourcing (43%); IT product distribution and sale (29%); electronics and hardware assembly and manufacturing (7%); digital content production and supply (5%) and other IT-related services (6%). 

In 2017, the city’s information and communications sector maintained stable growth, with total revenue hitting VND21.75 trillion, 3.5% higher than the yearly target and increasing by 9% compared to 2016.

In particular, the information technology sector (software technology and digital content) earned VND14.4 trillion. Its software export revenue reached US$67 million, up 15% against 2016. 

According to the municipal Department of Statistics, the IT sector contributed about 5.4% of the local GDP in the year. 

As of 2017, the Da Nang Software Park had been fully filled. It is now home to 75 domestic and foreign IT businesses with a total investment capital of nearly VND1.8 trillion, creating jobs for 2,400 people. The revenue of businesses operating in the park has grown through years.

Around 43% of nearly 700 IT businesses in the city specialise in software producing and outsourcing. Many large domestic and foreign software businesses have established their offices in Da Nang, including FPT Software, Axon Active, Gameloft, LogiGear, MagRabbit, Global Cybersoft, Enclave, Asnet, SDC (Software Development Centre of Da Nang University) and NAL Solutions. These companies provide software-outsourcing services for partners in Japan, North American, Australian and Europe.

Las year, Da Nang’s software park was recognised as a centralised information technology centre – the third of its kind in Vietnam after two in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. 

The city has called for investment in a software park in the Da Phuoc International urban area and the 341-ha Da Nang IT Park.

In 2015, the city’s e-government system was transferred to 16 cities and provinces towards building smart cities including the IT and communications infrastructure, IT applications, policy and mechanisms for IT and communications and IT manpower resources.

In April 2018, the local authority and FPT Group - a Vietnamese software giant, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on building Da Nang as a ‘smart city’ for the 2018-20 period.

As planned, FPT will invest VND15 billion (US$664,000) in building pilot projects with smart applications in 2018-19.

According to Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Ho Ky Minh, the city’s e-government system, which was launched in 2014, had been used by 225 agencies and 4,000 users. About 50% of public procedures were also posted online.

Da Nang’s IT infrastructure was now available for smart connections among air control, water, garbage, meteorology, and energy agencies. It could also provide earthquake and tsunami warnings, and data on flooding, erosion, sewage management, and bridges.

The city will be ready for 4G LTE (Long-Term Evolution) this year.

Free wireless internet (wifi) services, with a maximum of 20,000 connections, was also offered for local residents and tourists at major centres and streets in the city, including living quarters, tourist sites, schools, beaches, hospitals,  and shopping malls, alongside bus and railway stations, airports and entertainment centres.

Da Nang plans to become a ‘smart city’ by 2020 and a ‘green city’ by 2025.