Vietnam's software makers welcome Clinton's visit
HANOI - A son-in-law of communist Vietnam's most
famous general sees U.S. President Bill Clinton as an
ally in a battle to put his country on the global IT map.
Truong Gia Binh, son-in-law of America's Vietnam War
nemesis Vo Nguyen Giap, said Clinton's historic
three-day visit to Vietnam from Thursday would be a
big event for his software and Internet firm.
Binh and a group of other Russian-trained scientific pros
had launched the Corporation for Financing and
Promoting Technology (FPT) in 1988.
Twelve years later, FPT says it is Vietnam's biggest
software firm. Binh said FPT has a 30 percent share of
a fledgling Internet market and has become a software
exporter with revenues projected at $50 million this
year and profits of about five percent of that.
"It is a very big event for us," Binh said at the weekend
of Clinton's visit. "People know about Vietnam for
agriculture, rice, and coffee, but I don't think they are
aware of Vietnam's software development. This is an
excellent opportunity.
"The U.S. is a superpower in technology and economy
and should contribute a lot to the growth of Vietnam
and Vietnam also could be a very good partner in the
new economy and with U.S. business."
Binh said he would be meeting U.S. business
delegations travelling to Vietnam at the same time as
Clinton to discuss cooperation. And he said FPT would
sign an e-commerce deal with MeetChina.com, a
U.S.-based online sourcing firm, this week.
FPT's marketing director Le Hong Son said FPT's
software export contracts were currently worth $1.4
million.
Binh said FPT and the software export industry in
Vietnam in general were looking for rapid expansion.
"The target is $500 million from the software industry by
2005. I think that's quite a good speed. Now it's still
very small," said Binh.
Binh said Vietnam was lagging about five years behind
its regional software competitors such as India and the
Philippines, but could catch up fast given its 20 percent
comparative advantage in wages and highly educated
workers.
"With the new economy, there are no borders," he said.
Binh said FPT had 29,000 Internet subscribers, a 30
percent share of a Vietnamese market that was doubling
annually.
He said that while technically government-owned, FPT
had no obligations to the state beyond its tax bill. Later
in the year, or in the first quarter of next year, it planned
to "equitize" by making its nearly 1,000 employees
shareholders. It was also considering a stock market
listing in two or three years.
Binh was not comfortable discussing implications of
Vietnam's current strict controls on information,
including Internet censorship, which analysts have
highlighted as obstacles to its ambitions.
"I think the situation will change, but not so fast," he
said. "It is one of the top factors for development in the
information age, but still Vietnam has to be concerned
about cultural issues."
Binh said he believed the global IT explosion had
helped prompt a revival of Vietnam's reform process
this year, including a landmark trade pact with the
United States.
"I think the government has certain concerns and the
government is also interested in using the Internet as a
tool for development. It will think how that should be
done," he said.
Binh said General Giap, famed victor over the French at
Dien Bien Phu in 1954 and commander of communist
forces during the Vietnam War, was an IT enthusiast.
By David Brunnstrom - Reuters - November 13, 2000.
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