Minister of Science and Technology Nguyen Manh Hung said goals must be measurable in order to clarify and quantify their impact on economic growth, instead of having discussions about expenditures without efficiency targets. 

Resource allocation for research institutions should hinge on effectiveness. Some countries quantify this: DT contributes 1 percent to GDP growth, innovation adds 1 percent, and S&T makes up 1 percent. Investing 3 percent of the state budget in these areas should yield 3 percent GDP growth.

Second, Vietnam has linked ST, innovation and DT, so it is necessary to clarify the connection between them. Of the three important factors, S&T provides the foundation, generating new knowledge and tools. Innovation acts as the driver, turning that knowledge into ideas and solutions to solve socio-economic questions. DT creates a digital environment and tools to transform those innovative ideas into products, services, processes, and business models, integrating them into daily life to deliver tangible value for socio-economic development.

Third, regarding breakthrough solutions:

For DT: Accelerating DT through administrative decisions, shifting all activities to digital platforms and transforming organizations with technology, especially AI. This is not a matter of technology, but institutional regime, and administrative decisions, so the process can be implemented quickly.

For innovation: Boosting enterprises’ tech innovation to raise labor productivity via preferential loans and tax reductions. Promoting creative startups with new business models and technologies through venture capital funds and sandbox mechanisms.

For S&T: Investing in modern S&T infrastructure and labs, consistently shifting basic research to universities (where professors and PhD students, i.e. major researchers, concentrate). To develop technologies, it is necessary to focus on technology institutes and enterprises; and offer tax deductions for enterprises’ spending on S&T to encourage businesses to spend on R&D. The goal is 60-80 percent of S&T funding from businesses.

Currently, S&T should prioritize strategic technologies—those sparking breakthroughs, high-quality growth, and high added value, laying the groundwork for other industries and positioning Vietnam at the forefront of S&T globally. Basic research must also support these strategic technologies and national flagship products.

Van Anh