The measure of digital transformation is the time and money people save
(Dan Tri) - Minister Vu Hai Quan emphasized that the effectiveness of digital transformation must be reflected in higher productivity, lower costs and more convenient services for people and businesses.
On October 9, at the Vietnam National Exhibition Center (Dong Anh, Hanoi), the Ministry of Science and Technology organized a program to celebrate National Digital Transformation Day 2026.
How to build platforms and applications that truly help people save time and businesses reduce costs is the issue raised at the program.
Along with the results on infrastructure and digital technology business development, comments focused on the need to evaluate effectiveness from actual use and operation.
Don't stop at building more foundations
Speaking at the program, Minister of Science and Technology Vu Hai Quan emphasized that Resolution 57-NQ/TW of the Politburo identified science, technology, innovation and digital transformation as the most important driving forces of development.
Minister of Science and Technology Vu Hai Quan.
According to the Minister, the effectiveness of digital transformation cannot be measured solely by the number of platforms or applications built. The results must be expressed in higher productivity, lower costs, more convenient services and improved competitiveness.
This requirement focuses on the value that technology brings during use. Completing an application or putting a platform into action is the first step; The level of use and ability to handle actual work is the basis for evaluating effectiveness.
Information about recent results, the Minister said that the foundation for national digital transformation continues to be strengthened. The legal corridor, Digital National Architecture Framework and shared digital platforms are gradually being completed.
By September, the 5G network covered 91.99% of the population, fiber optic cable reached 100% of communes and wards. The country currently has 81,600 digital technology enterprises, with digital technology industry revenue reaching nearly 3.6 million billion VND.
In addition to these results, the Minister pointed out five major challenges that need to be addressed to digitally transform to meet development requirements.
First of all, progress in building data in some areas is still slow. Digital platforms have not developed evenly, while computing and connection infrastructure still have limitations.
The application of artificial intelligence in businesses, especially small and medium enterprises, has not met the requirements. This is one of the issues raised by the Minister along with data, platform and infrastructure limitations.
In particular, the shortage of human resources specialized in digital transformation still occurs in ministries, branches and localities, especially at the commune level. The problem of human resources is therefore posed in parallel with the need to continue perfecting technical conditions.
Hanoi pilots online birth registration right at the hospital.
From the above reality, the Minister proposed to focus on perfecting institutions and innovating management methods; Synchronously develop digital infrastructure, digital platforms and shared data.
Building a digital government must take people and businesses as the center. Along with that is the requirement to make the digital economy a new growth engine, develop an inclusive digital society, improve the quality of digital human resources and ensure network safety and security.
To implement these tasks, the Minister emphasized that each digital transformation program needs to be specified with clear tasks, products, deadlines and responsibilities. Evaluation of results must be based on actual performance data.
In particular, the level of use, the ability to save time and costs are important bases. This is also the basis for determining whether a program creates value for people and businesses or whether it still stops at building more applications and platforms.
The Minister emphasized that each digital transformation program needs to be specified with clear tasks, products, deadlines and responsibilities.
According to the direction stated by the Minister of the Army, efficiency requirements need to be associated with each specific task, instead of just being expressed in the general goals of the program. The product must come with implementation responsibility and results that can be evaluated during operation.
What do people benefit from digital transformation?
From Hanoi's reality, Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of Hanoi Department of Science and Technology, shared the approach of taking people's needs as the starting point when building and deploying digital utilities.
According to Mr. Tuan, the city is aiming to concentrate services and utilities on a unified access point, the iHanoi application. The goal is to help people more conveniently receive information, send feedback and use services.
Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of Hanoi Department of Science and Technology.
An example introduced at the program is HanoiCheck, a utility on iHanoi that allows parents to access information about menus, meals and food traceability at school.
With this utility, digital transformation content is associated with a specific need in life: Tracking student meal information. Data about menus and foods are posted to the system for parents to access.
Mr. Tuan said the system has connected nearly 1.5 million students. During the period from September 1 to October 8, HanoiCheck recorded 247,339 visits.
Regarding receiving and processing feedback and recommendations, iHanoi has recorded 263,395 feedback and recommendations. From this activity, representatives of the Hanoi Department of Science and Technology provided an estimate of the time people can save when using the application.
At the event, many products and technology solutions were also displayed.
Accordingly, if it previously took people about two hours to learn the regulations, write and submit the application, operations on the application can now be done in about 15 minutes.
The above time limit is an estimate stated in the program, not a result of measuring the actual savings of all feedback and recommendations. However, this comparison shows that the evaluation direction is set: Consider how much the technology helps reduce operations, time and effort for the user.
From the implementation process, Mr. Tuan said that building a foundation is only the first step. For digital transformation to create value, services must come from people's actual needs, along with clear operating procedures and responsibilities.
Data must also be updated, standardized and exploited effectively. With utilities serving daily needs, this is a condition for information on the system to be used in practice.
This approach is also demonstrated through models in Viet Hung ward, Hanoi. The locality has deployed digital maps on a geographic information system platform with 9 key data layers.
In the field of schools, 6/9 schools in the area have implemented the smart canteen model. All 7 markets of the ward have implemented the Market 4.0 model.
The models are put into spaces associated with people's daily activities, from schools, markets to residential groups. The requirement is to evaluate the effectiveness during the operation process, in addition to recording the number of participating units.
Hanoi children experience educational activities using robots.
Notably, the model "Digital residential group - Connect, accompany, develop" is built from practical needs in daily work. The model aims to help information reach the right people, feedback be received in the right place and each job has someone to monitor and give feedback.
At the grassroots level, the application of technology is therefore associated with both work organization and handling responsibilities. Receiving information is one step, while monitoring and feedback are tasks that need to be clearly defined during the operation process.
Viet Hung Ward determined that effectiveness must be evaluated by actual data, not consistent with the numbers illustrating the goal of saving time with the results achieved.
Mr. Ngo Hong Khang - Chairman of Binh Phuoc Ward People's Committee.
Mr. Ngo Hong Khang - Chairman of Binh Phuoc Ward People's Committee said that, at the grassroots level, equipping smart devices or installing applications does not mean that people have digital capabilities.
To help people overcome the psychology of "fear of mistakes, fear of difficulty" when submitting applications online or making non-cash payments, Binh Phuoc ward government implemented the movement "Digital education for the common people" and the mobilization model "Every person is a digital citizen".
Instead of doing it for them, members of the community digital technology team persevered in "going to every alley, knocking on every house", instructing each operation so that people can perform it themselves.
Delegates pressed the button to start National Digital Transformation Day October 10.
Within the framework of the program, delegates visited the 2026 Digital Transformation Exhibition, watched documentaries about outstanding achievements and exchanged implementation experiences at units and localities. The program also took place the ceremony of pressing the button to launch the commune-level digital transformation application platform.
Photo: Minh Nhat, Do Ngoc Luu