Vietnamese Ambassador highlights digital ecosystem

For the second time, the annual Silicon Valley field trip of the MSc Business Information Systems degree programme of the FHNW has been held as a “Local Edition” entirely in Switzerland. Thanks to video streaming, the participants engaged in lectures and discussions with startup accelerators, innovators and industry leaders from Europe, Asia and the USA. The participating students gained first-hand insights into current trends in digital technologies from a global perspective.

A highlight of the event was the contribution of her Excellency Dr. Linh Lan Le, Ambassador of Vietnam to Switzerland. In her speech, the Ambassador offered a detailed overview of the current state of digital transformation and innovation in Vietnam.

Left to right: Prof. Dr. Knut Hinkelmann, Prof. Dr. Regula Altmann-Jöhl, Ambassador Le Linh Lan, Dr. Teresa Freiburghaus, First Secretary Thuy Le.

Rapid transformation

The country has set ambitious goals in the areas of e-government, e-economy and e-society. Already, Vietnam has one of the fastest growing digital ecosystems in South East Asia and the world. This trend has been accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, for instance with online shopping rapidly changing a traditionally cash-oriented society and leading to more people having bank accounts.

While the digital economy currently accounts for 8% of Vietnam’s GDP, this share is projected to grow to 20% by 2025. To fully benefit from this development, the government aims at turning Vietnam into an innovation hub in South East Asia, producing 100’000 tech businesses and 10 unicorns in areas like artificial intelligence, blockchain and internet of things.

Engaging discussions & further collaboration

Throughout the day, students learned about current digital innovations by Vietnamese startups in sectors as diverse as health care and search engines. Concluding the section on Vietnam was an engaging panel discussion featuring Ambassador Lan, Cong Thang Huynh, Co-Founder of Innolab Asia, Vinh Toan Luu, Co-Founder and CTO of Vietsearch and V-Space, and Quy Vo-Reinhard, Co-Founder and Director of dHealth Foundations.

The panel focused on fostering entrepreneurship in Vietnam and attracting investment through partnerships between the public and private sector. Another topic was the role of Vietnamese expats who, after launching successful careers for instance in Silicon Valley, return to Vietnam to apply their expertise to new business ideas and emerging markets.

Outside the study programme, Ambassador Lan met with the director of the FHNW School of Business, Prof. Dr. Regula Altmann-Jöhl. They discussed the possibilities of further collaboration in business education and research, which would benefit both Vietnam and Switzerland.

Further information

Website MSc Business Information Systems