(MPI) - The 29th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Small and Medium Enterprises Ministerial Meeting was held in Washington, the US on August 21 (local time) with the participation of representatives from APEC economies such as Chile, China, Indonesia and so on. Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Duy Dong attended the meeting.

At the opening session of the meeting, APEC economies focused on discussing development priorities regarding interconnected, innovative and inclusive. Deputy Minister delivered a speech at the panel discussion themed “Empowering micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the Global Marketplace through Digital Tools and Technologies”.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Duy Dong addresses the event. Photo: MPI

Deputy Minister Dong said Vietnamese enterprises have shifted to online activities to meet customers’ needs and improve operation efficiency and competitiveness.

However, they are facing a lot of difficulties and challenges in the process of digital transformation. A report conducted by the MPI showed that 60.1 percent of surveyed enterprises said that key barrier they faced was high cost of investment and technology application; 52.3 percent found difficulties in changing business habits; 45.4 percent of those are lack of internal human resources; and 40.4 percent do not have information on digital transformation solutions.

In additional, 38.5 percent of businesses also has challenges in integrating digital solutions in their operations; 32.1 percent do not have commitments from their leaders; 26.6 percent do not have commitments from employees; and 23.4 percent of those are afraid of leaking personal and business data.

The government of Vietnam approved the National Digital Transformation Programme and the Digital Economy Strategy since 2021. The MPI also launched a programme supporting businesses in digital transformation for 2021- 2025 to boost digital transformation in businesses through the application of digital technology, improving their efficiency, capacity, and competitiveness.

The ministry has focused on building tools, documents and guidelines for businesses during their digital transformation roadmap, and launching handbooks on for digital transformation for SMEs in the fields of: agriculture, processing and manufacturing, trade and services, logistics, and tourism. The ministry also have training course for about 10 thousand enterprises in 40 provinces and cities, and 2 thousand businesses have assessed their readiness for digital transformation.

Deputy Minister Dong emphasised that Vietnam sees great potential and is committed to developing a sustainable and carbon-neutral economy adding that digital transformation creates opportunities to build innovative and substantive business models for MSMEs. Many national strategies underline the importance of “dual transformation”, including green and digital transformation in economic sectors and SMEs.

Vietnam is willing to collaborate with other APEC economies to boost businesses’ sustainable development and make contributions to helping the economy to develop sustainably./.

Bao Linh

Ministry of Planning and Investment