Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution - C4IR inaugurated in HCM City

This is an important event within the framework of the Ho Chi Minh City Economic Forum 2024 (HEF 2024) themed “Industrial Transformation: New Driving Force for Sustainable Development of Ho Chi Minh City.”

The centre which is connected with the World Economic Forum’s global network of C4IR centres is to support solutions and policy recommendations, as well as research in the priority areas of the city that align with national directions and international trends.

Additionally, it will mobilize resources and capital to assist businesses in adopting new technologies that keep pace with the trends of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in Ho Chi Minh City.

The Vietnam C4IR center will operate in a public-private partnership model, attracting the participation of major Vietnamese and local businesses as founders.

Speaking at the ceremony, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh noted that the inauguration of the centre concretizes the Party’s guidelines on science and technology, fosters innovation and the application of achievements from the Fourth Industrial Revolution, and promotes national industrialization and modernization.

It meets the objective demands of the practical development of the country, and contributes to deeper integration in the fields of science and technology and innovation, he said.

In addition, he said, the establishment of the centre also reflects the pioneering role of Ho Chi Minh City as the economic, financial, service, cultural, educational, scientific, and technological hub of the country and the region.

According to the government leader, sustainable and inclusive development based on the application of modern science and technology, along with a strong promotion of entrepreneurship and innovation, is an inevitable trend and an objective requirement, making it a strategic choice and top priority for today’s world and countries.

The PM urged businesses and founders to provide support in terms of resources, finances, human capital, and management to ensure the center operates effectively.

Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, vice chairwoman of HDBank and a founding member of the C4IR, stated that many major projects have been implemented at the Saigon High-Tech Park in recent times. HDBank for instance has established the 35,000 m² Galaxy Innovation Hub, attracting many multinational technology corporations such as Nidec and Nipro (Japan), Samsung (Republic of Korea), and Intel, Facebook, and Google (USA).

Meanwhile, the Vietjet Aviation Academy has inaugurated its Aviation Technology Center to train 50,000 students each year in collaboration with aircraft manufacturer Airbus.

The inauguration of the C4IR is the result of efforts by the Vietnamese government and Ho Chi Minh City to promote increasingly deeper cooperation between Vietnam and the World Economic Forum.