Intelligent Community Forum ICF honors Binh Duong Smart Region

Intelligent Community Forum ICF has honored Binh Duong Smart Region as one of the top 7 communities with excellent smart city development strategy in the world in 2021. This is the first time Binh Duong Smart Region enters the top 7, after three consecutive times in the top 21 (Smart 21).

The international community recognizes

The above result confirms the recognition of the international community for the correct strategy and steady development steps of Binh Duong in recent years. ICF conducted researches and evaluated hundreds of communities around the world to choose the top 21 (Smart 21). The Top 21 will continue to be compared and evaluated thoroughly, directly and indirectly to select the top 7 regions with the smartest development strategies.

Binh Duong New City is defined as the center that connects Binh Duong Innovation Region.

A region entering the top 7, first of all, needs to satisfy six rigorous criteria that were tested in the top 21. Specifically, the criteria are broadband platform, knowledgable human resource, innovation, sustainable development, digital equality, and unanimous commitment of the whole community. Especially in the top 7, ICF also researched and assessed the depth of development strategies, the inheritance, and coherence of a strategy, in order to ultimately create values for the prosperity and happiness of the community. Due to the implementation of breakthrough strategies, namely the Binh Duong Innovation Region - the centerpiece of Smart City Project in the upcoming development period, Binh Duong has been appreciated by ICF.

A right trategy

In order to be honored by ICF in the top 7, over 25 years, the provincial leaders have been determined to consider people as the center of all strategies; attempt to create a complete ecosystem serving people, investors and the workforce. Local State and businesses join hands with each other, share difficulties, understand and orient the future, all for the happiness of the community.

Facing the industrial revolution 4.0, Binh Duong - a large industrial economic region with a dynamic government system, modern infrastructure is the foundation for the Smart City Project to be born in 2016, create a breakthrough in comprehensive development, both technological and non-technological sectors. Binh Duong is specially planned according to six criteria of ICF. Those six criteria are also an important foundation for smart city development, knowledge-based economy and digital economy, including: (1) Broadband deployed in the region, (2) Knowledgable workforce as well as training and research activities, (3) Innovation policies and activities in the community, (4) Equal access to digital technology for all in the community, (5) Sustainable development, (6) Support and engagement from the whole community.

To satisfy the above criteria, the province planned for a smart region and pioneered to develop according to these criteria, determined to become a member of ICF. Becoming a member of ICF will help Binh Duong expand opportunities for exchanges, learn experience with nearly 200 prosperous intelligent provinces and cities around the world, join with new development trends of the world, gain trust of investors, reposition its reputation in the international arena.

The implementation of the Smart City Project in the past 5 years contributed to the realization of 4 breakthrough programs of Provincial Party Committee 2016-2020 term. Thanks to innovation programs, Binh Duong achieved some very impressive results, such as the number of enterprises in the province from the beginning of 2016 to 2020 significantly increased not only in quantity but also in quality; international cooperation increased dramatically; infrastructures were improved, especially transport infrastructure. The whole province now has 3 cities (Thu Dau Mot city is class 1, Thuan An city and Di An city is class-2 cities); urbanization rate reached 82%. Binh Duong is also the first locality in the country as building social housing for low-income people, the only locality that has so far eliminated all poor households; build a green, clean living environment to meet new needs of people and businesses.

Binh Duong successfully hosted consecutive global events of economic cooperation, science and technology, innovation, smart cities, such as ICF Conference, World Technopolis Association WTA Summit, Horasis Asia Meeting, World Trade Center Association (WTCA) Conference. Binh Duong has proved that its development direction of Binh Duong Smart City is correct and in line with the world trend.

With the current potential and capacity, Binh Duong province has taken another step forward, which is to build a new Binh Duong Innovation Region. Particularly, a scientific technological industrial park in Bau Bang district was assessed by economic experts as a breakthrough in industrial production, a fundamental infrastructure for the formation of a creative innovation ecosystem, investment attraction with high added values, creating a basis for hi-tech manufacture of Binh Duong. The clear and correct orientation towards a smart city has facilitated a breakthrough in socio-economic growth, improved competitiveness of the province in attracting foreign investment, brand positioning in the international arena.

Do Cong Anh, Deputy Director in charge of Informatization Department - Ministry of Information and Communications: “Binh Duong is one of the leading provinces in attracting foreign investment. Binh Duong determined that at the present stage it is necessary to find a new development model, obtain a new development strategy that is more inclined to attract investment in science technology, and high technology;combined with knowledge-based economy. The province worked with Eindhoven city to develop a strategy, take into account local characteristics, and then developed solutions revolve around this strategy. I see Binh Duong as a strategic locality that pioneered the combination of three parties, these are the State, businesses and institutes/universities”.

Reported by Phuong Le - Translated by Ngoc Huynh