The telecom leader made this prediction while talking with the press on the sidelines of the ASEM ICT Ministerial Meeting in Hanoi on November 30.

He based his forecast on the fact that the country has made certain commitments to further opening the sector after becoming a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

In its commitments to the WTO, Vietnam pledged to allow foreign companies to execute business deals in the form of shareholders.

Foreign companies will be able to partner with telecom service providers which have already developed a network infrastructure given that their capital contribution does not exceed 49 percent.

They are encouraged to become a partner in joint ventures with Vietnamese companies licensed to provide telecom services without developing a network infrastructure yet. In  such joint ventures, foreign companies are permitted to contribute 60 percent of capital investment in the initial stage. After which, no

limitations are imposed on their increased in investment.

In 2006, foreign direct investment into the telecommunications sector reached US$1.8 billion to which the US's Intel Corp alone contributed US$1 billion. The official development investment in the field stood at US$500 million.
VNA