Vietnam is facing numerous challenges caused by rapid urbanization, leaving burdens on its technical and social infrastructure and leading to many severe consequences. In this context, finding solutions for sustainable urban development is one of Vietnam’s current top priorities.

Vietnam is struggling with many challenges caused by its rapid urbanization, which is among the fastest in the region.

There are a total of 800 urban areas across Vietnam with a current urbanization percentage of around 37%. This figure is expected to increase by 50% by 2025.

Photo: Internet

As a result, Vietnam has to deal with numerous problems including waste and water treatment and public transportation. Developing smart cities will be the key to meeting such challenges, according to Nguyen Thanh Phong, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee.

"One of the greatest advantages of smart cities is the ability to promote inclusive and comprehensive growth. Our plan to make Ho Chi Minh City a smart city is expected to strongly boost its growth compared to traditional methods based on capital and human resources.", said Phong.

Ho Chi Minh City’s authorities have set out four main goals to turn the city into a smart city: ensure economic growth, target intellectual and digital economies, effectively manage urban areas based on forecasts, improve living and working environments, and increase people’s engagement in management activities.

In order to achieve these goals, the city has geared up efforts to attract all possible financial resources, develop the chip industry, and IT services.

The government has set a target of developing at least three smart cities in Vietnam by 2020 with priority given to developing the digital industry, smart tourism, and agriculture./.

VNF/VOV5