Minister Vu Hai Quan: People are at the center of Viet Nam's digital transformation process

<p style="text-align: justify;">That was the key message shared by Minister Vu Hai Quan during a bilateral meeting with Tanzania’s Minister of Communication and Information Technology, Angellah Jasmine Mbelwa Kairuki, emphasizing a people-centered approach in Viet Nam's digital transformation process.</p>

On August 3, 2026, Minister of Science and Technology Vu Hai Quan held a bilateral meeting with Tanzania’s Minister of Communication and Information Technology, Angellah Jasmine Mbelwa Kairuki. During the talks, both sides agreed to step up the implementation of cooperation content under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed in 2022, while expanding collaboration in digital transformation, artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, digital infrastructure, human resource training, and connecting tech businesses between the two countries.

At the meeting, Minister Vu Hai Quan affirmed that the visit by Minister Angellah Jasmine Mbelwa Kairuki marks an important milestone, opening a new phase of cooperation between the two Ministries and two nations. The Minister emphasized that Viet Nam and Tanzania share a long-standing traditional friendship, in which economic, trade, and telecommunications cooperation have become prominent pillars. The growth of Halotel - Viettel’s brand in Tanzania with over 19 million subscribers - alongside high-tech workforce training programs at the Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology (PTIT), serves as a clear proof of effective bilateral cooperation.

The Minister noted that, as both Viet Nam and Tanzania identify digital technology, digital infrastructure, and AI as critical drivers for growth, this meeting aims to substantiate and elevate the 2022 MOU by sharing experience, exchanging visions, and fostering practical cooperation opportunities among regulatory agencies, educational institutions, and tech enterprises of both countries.

Emphasizing that the visit takes place at a strategically important juncture, Minister Vu Hai Quan outlined four key focus areas:

First, perfecting the legal framework for telecommunications, frequency management, and sustainable digital infrastructure development; sharing experiences on 5G commercialization, infrastructure-sharing mechanisms, telecom enterprise management, and creating a fair competitive environment.

Second, exchanging experience in constructing national digital transformation architecture, sharing Viet Nam’s institutional breakthroughs such as the 2025 Law on Digital Transformation, the 2025 Law on Data, the National Master Digital Architecture, a system of 79 shared digital platforms, and 20 core national databases.

Third, popularizing community digital skills: Spreading the Community Digital Technology Team model following the motto "going to every alley, knocking on every door, guiding every person."

Fourth, enhancing cooperation in AI, semiconductors, and tech business connectivity, including sharing AI governance experiences, developing the semiconductor workforce, and encouraging investments from both countries' tech companies in Tanzania and the broader East African region.

Minister Angellah Jasmine Mbelwa Kairuki highly appreciated the friendly relations between the two nations built on a foundation of trust and cooperation over many decades. The Minister expressed her desire to coordinate closely with Viet Nam's Ministry of Science and Technology to broaden cooperation in IT, telecommunications, and digital transformation, while praising Halotel’s contributions to Tanzanian telecom infrastructure development, especially in rural and disadvantaged areas.

Within the framework of the meeting, representatives from units under the Ministry of Science and Technology presented Viet Nam’s achievements in digital infrastructure development, telecommunications and radio frequency management, implementation of the National Digital Transformation Program, building a digital institutional framework, AI and semiconductor development, and the strategy to bring Viet Namese digital tech enterprises to the global market.

At the conclusion of the talks, Minister Vu Hai Quan proposed that both sides consider signing an addendum or drafting a new MOU featuring updated cooperation areas such as AI, semiconductors, tech laboratories, and workforce training. The Minister also expressed his desire to encourage more Vietnamese tech companies participating in the "Go Global" program to invest in Tanzania, affirming that both Ministries will coordinate to resolve obstacles and create favorable conditions for businesses to expand collaboration./.