Strengthen Exchange and Cooperation on IT Policy between KISDI and NIPTS
About 60 Vietnamese Government Officials including Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Posts and Telematics(MPT) Participated in the Meeting

The Korea Information Society Development Institute(KISDI) held Korea-Vietnam International Conference on ICT Development on February 1st at the Daewoo Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam.

This conference was designed to explore ways to develop Vietnam's IT policies as well as to strengthen cooperation and exchange on IT policies between IT policy research institutes in the two countries - KISDI and the National Institute of Posts and Telematics Strategy(NIPTS) - through policy exchanges between the two organizations.

Ahead of the meeting, KISDI held Korea-Vietnam Workshop on IT Development inviting senior Vietnamese officials in the IT field on November 1st, 2006, introducing Korea's experiences with adoption of competition and regulatory policies in the telecommunications market. Based on that, there was a broad range of discussion on the direction of future IT development in Vietnam. This time, the conference, based on the issues raised during the Workshop, provided a forum for introducing Korea's policy experiences, which attract the attention of Vietnam, and discussing directions for Vietnam's IT development

About 60 officials in the Vietnamese government attended the meeting including Vu Duc Dam, Deputy Minister of the MPT and other officials in charge of IT policies and those from economy-related ministries such as the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Trade, the Ministry of Science and Technology and Central Economy Committee. The attendees expressed much interest in the meeting.

Representatives from Korea included Kang In-Soo, a Senior Research Fellow, Kim Jung-Hyun, a Research Fellow, Jung In-Suk and Choi Yong-Jae, professors at the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and Yun Young-Min, a professor at the Hanyang University. They filled the panels and halls of the conference, introducing cases in Korea and defining the current state of Vietnam, thus providing consultation on the direction of the country's IT policy development.

Dr. Kang In-Soo, "Hope to Lay a Foundation for Co-prosperity between the Two Countries"

During the meeting, Dr. Kang In-Soo explained the background of the conference, an extension of close cooperation between Korea and Vietnam in the IT field. He also added that "I expect that this conference will help Hanoi to develop the IT field in the midst of its rapid economic growth based on Seoul's experiences by actively responding to changes in the environment and hopefully, this meeting will lay a foundation for co-prosperity of the two countries."

The meeting kicked off with an opening speech by Dr. Kang In-Soo. Session 1 featured presentations by professor Jung In-Suk on "Competition between Liberalization and Privatization in the Telecommunications Market" and professor Choi Yong-Jae on "Telecommunications Licensing System for Liberalization of the Telecoms Market." Through the presentations, they suggested some policy proposals on the development of Vietnam's telecom policy based on Korea's experience with telecoms liberalization policies.

Expressed Interest in Privation of KT and Foreigners' Share Limit

In session 2, Nguyen Tuan Vinh from MPT made presentations on "Opening of Vietnam's Telecommunications Market" followed by lively discussions on the direction of its telecom policy after market liberalization. Vietnam, in particular, expressed interest in cases in Korea including privatization of KT and foreigners' limits on owning shares in domestic companies. Dr. Kim Jung-Hyun, one of the panel members who participated in the meeting, provided a more detailed explanations of related laws and domestic policies.

In session 3, professor Yun Young-Min and Dr. Ngo Quoc Thai from the NIPTS made presentations on "Establishment of e-government Infrastructure: problems and solutions" and "Developing Infrastructure for e-Government in Vietnam" respectively, followed by discussions on the direction of Vietnam's e-government policy in the future.

As policymakers in Vietnam have shown great interests in the conference, the meeting is expected to help domestic companies enter the telecommunications market and improve business environment there by transferring Korean experiences in IT policies

KISDI has provided consultations and support for the Vietnam's development of IT policies based on Korea's own experiences through various exchanges with NIPTS in Vietnam. With Hanoi being enthusiastic about benchmarking Korean model for IT development, this conference seems to serve as an opportunity to confirm Vietnam's high expectations and much interests in Korea and to meet their needs.

※National Institute of Posts and Telematics Strategy(NIPTS): A research institute under the Ministry of Posts and Telematics(MPT), it establishes mid- and long-term postal and IT policies.