A view of HCM City at night. HCM City has great potential for smart city development but still lags behind other cities in the region (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNS/VNA) – Ho Chi MinhCity has great potential for smart-city development but lags far behind otherAsian smart cities, according to a study issued by the HCM City-basedUniversity of Economics.
Nguyen Trong Hoai, vice president of theuniversity, said that city authorities faced major challenges to developsmart-city initiatives.
Speaking at a recent HCM City Economic Forum, hesaid the challenges included rapid urbanisation, traffic congestion, pollutionand increased population, as well as poor managerial coordination ofelectricity, water and transport infrastructure.
“To overcome these challenges, a smart-citymodel with infrastructure managed by smart people and smart technology isessential,” Hoai said.
The university study notes that a smart city“uses high technology in management, which connects information systems andsynchronises infrastructure planning”.
Nguyen Thien Nhan, Secretary of the HCM CityParty Committee, said it was important to improve research activities to enablecreative development, and strengthen connections between universities, researchinstitutes and enterprises.
Smart-city studies address six main areas: smartgovernance, economy, mobility, environment, people and living.
The university study recommends that HCM Cityfocus on economic growth, environmental protection, improvement of people’sliving standards, and promotion of creativity.
Nguyen Thanh Phong, Chairman of the municipalPeople’s Committee, said the city was implementing a project to become asmart urban area by 2020.
Under the plan, the city’s eastern area,including districts 2, 9 and Thu Duc, would be developed into an innovative hubbased on a digital- and knowledge-based economy.
The city already has a high percentage ofinformation and communications technology penetration. As of September lastyear, it was estimated there were 1.27 mobile phones per capita and nearly 70wireless-broadband subscribers out of 100.
To improve the quality and use of onlineinformation and governmental services, the city has built a rating system toreceive feedback from citizens and enterprises, which has helped increase thenumber of users.
HCM City has also worked with a number ofpartners to learn from their experiences, including the Vietnam Posts andTelecommunications Group, Viettel Group, the World Bank, Intel Products Vietnam,Arizona State University, the US Trade and Development Agency, and the ASEANSmart Cities Network.
However, compared to other smart cities in Asia,the roadmap for smart city development in HCM City still faces problems such asslow implementation and ineffective policies or projects.
In addition, the city has a limited amount ofinvestment finance and qualified human resources.
Recommendations
Experts have recommended that HCM City work withgovernmental and non-governmental organisations in and outside the country tobuild on the success of smart-city models around the world in terms of policy,technology, revenue and human resources.
In addition, innovation will be key to smartcity development in HCM City.
Huynh Thanh Dat, Director of HCM City NationalUniversity, said that so-called “innovation districts” would include a highdensity of creative and startup activities.
Experience from other countries shows thatinnovation districts are associated with research universities, which supplyentrepreneurs, subjects for innovation, and startup activities, according to Dat.
However, building an innovation district shouldbe viewed as only a “roadmap” rather than a specific destination.
Models from developed countries like the US,Japan, and the EU, and economies such as the Republic of Korea, Singapore andTaiwan, all show that relationships between the state, enterprises,scientists and investors should be promoted for smart-city development.
Jay Wadhwani, chief operating officer ofMitsubishi Heavy Industries Asia Pacific, said to improve the innovationcapacity of enterprises, it was important to think of solutions for sustainablegrowth.
“With the region urbanising at an unprecedentedrate, changes in consumption are helping to drive rapid growth. Both the publicand private sectors need to ensure that this growth takes place in anenvironmentally sustainable way,” he said.
"Sustainable growth also requires anappropriate standard of living, including solutions for traffic and wastemanagement, such as waste-to-energy systems," he added.
Philippe Leonard, executive director of SmartCities Council of Europe, said: “A smart city is not a technological issue.It’s about using technology to make a city smarter. A smart city improves thequality of life. Smart cities have residents who embrace creativity, aninclusive society and advanced education.”
“Such cities also include smart mobility (cleanand non-motorised options), smart economy (innovative entrepreneurship), smartGovernment (application of ICT and e-Government) and smart living (greenplanning and building, and green energy),” he said.
The case study of HCM City conducted by the HCMCity University of Economics assessed the city’s capability of smart-citydevelopment based on an overview of research about smart city areas around theworld. It also analysed and compared HCM City’s smart city development withsoutheastern provinces in Vietnam and other smart cities in Asia.-VNS/VNA
Nguyen Trong Hoai, vice president of theuniversity, said that city authorities faced major challenges to developsmart-city initiatives.
Speaking at a recent HCM City Economic Forum, hesaid the challenges included rapid urbanisation, traffic congestion, pollutionand increased population, as well as poor managerial coordination ofelectricity, water and transport infrastructure.
“To overcome these challenges, a smart-citymodel with infrastructure managed by smart people and smart technology isessential,” Hoai said.
The university study notes that a smart city“uses high technology in management, which connects information systems andsynchronises infrastructure planning”.
Nguyen Thien Nhan, Secretary of the HCM CityParty Committee, said it was important to improve research activities to enablecreative development, and strengthen connections between universities, researchinstitutes and enterprises.
Smart-city studies address six main areas: smartgovernance, economy, mobility, environment, people and living.
The university study recommends that HCM Cityfocus on economic growth, environmental protection, improvement of people’sliving standards, and promotion of creativity.
Nguyen Thanh Phong, Chairman of the municipalPeople’s Committee, said the city was implementing a project to become asmart urban area by 2020.
Under the plan, the city’s eastern area,including districts 2, 9 and Thu Duc, would be developed into an innovative hubbased on a digital- and knowledge-based economy.
The city already has a high percentage ofinformation and communications technology penetration. As of September lastyear, it was estimated there were 1.27 mobile phones per capita and nearly 70wireless-broadband subscribers out of 100.
To improve the quality and use of onlineinformation and governmental services, the city has built a rating system toreceive feedback from citizens and enterprises, which has helped increase thenumber of users.
HCM City has also worked with a number ofpartners to learn from their experiences, including the Vietnam Posts andTelecommunications Group, Viettel Group, the World Bank, Intel Products Vietnam,Arizona State University, the US Trade and Development Agency, and the ASEANSmart Cities Network.
However, compared to other smart cities in Asia,the roadmap for smart city development in HCM City still faces problems such asslow implementation and ineffective policies or projects.
In addition, the city has a limited amount ofinvestment finance and qualified human resources.
Recommendations
Experts have recommended that HCM City work withgovernmental and non-governmental organisations in and outside the country tobuild on the success of smart-city models around the world in terms of policy,technology, revenue and human resources.
In addition, innovation will be key to smartcity development in HCM City.
Huynh Thanh Dat, Director of HCM City NationalUniversity, said that so-called “innovation districts” would include a highdensity of creative and startup activities.
Experience from other countries shows thatinnovation districts are associated with research universities, which supplyentrepreneurs, subjects for innovation, and startup activities, according to Dat.
However, building an innovation district shouldbe viewed as only a “roadmap” rather than a specific destination.
Models from developed countries like the US,Japan, and the EU, and economies such as the Republic of Korea, Singapore andTaiwan, all show that relationships between the state, enterprises,scientists and investors should be promoted for smart-city development.
Jay Wadhwani, chief operating officer ofMitsubishi Heavy Industries Asia Pacific, said to improve the innovationcapacity of enterprises, it was important to think of solutions for sustainablegrowth.
“With the region urbanising at an unprecedentedrate, changes in consumption are helping to drive rapid growth. Both the publicand private sectors need to ensure that this growth takes place in anenvironmentally sustainable way,” he said.
"Sustainable growth also requires anappropriate standard of living, including solutions for traffic and wastemanagement, such as waste-to-energy systems," he added.
Philippe Leonard, executive director of SmartCities Council of Europe, said: “A smart city is not a technological issue.It’s about using technology to make a city smarter. A smart city improves thequality of life. Smart cities have residents who embrace creativity, aninclusive society and advanced education.”
“Such cities also include smart mobility (cleanand non-motorised options), smart economy (innovative entrepreneurship), smartGovernment (application of ICT and e-Government) and smart living (greenplanning and building, and green energy),” he said.
The case study of HCM City conducted by the HCMCity University of Economics assessed the city’s capability of smart-citydevelopment based on an overview of research about smart city areas around theworld. It also analysed and compared HCM City’s smart city development withsoutheastern provinces in Vietnam and other smart cities in Asia.-VNS/VNA
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