Viettel Group should continue affirming its leading role in the country’s telecommunications and information and technology sector to further contribute to the country’s development, said Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

At a working session with Viettel’s leaders in Ha Noi on Tuesday on its business situation and development strategy, Phuc highly valued the group’s achievement in the past as well as its continuous expansion to new levels of development.

Accordingly, Viettel has become a leading firm in the telecommunications and IT sector with a record number of subscribers, becoming the largest and most effective economic defense group in the three criteria of profit, State budget contribution and most valuable brand name.

Viettel has also made the biggest overseas investment among Vietnamese firms. It took the first and pilot position in establishing the network security industry in Viet Nam, he said.

The PM affirmed Viettel has been a typical group for a State-owned enterprise which has a high target, national desire and good management system.

“Viet Nam needs more businesses like Viettel,” he added.

Emphasising the important requirement to develop technology and escape from the middle income trap, he said Viettel has been a typical example to encourage the business community towards stronger growth, especially in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

He was also impressed with Viettel’s culture and spirit, demonstrated through its economic activities, production and businesses.

The group has developed high quality human resources, attracting talented people to create breakthroughs in its development.

Viettel has shown the important role of State-owned enterprises in the socialist-oriented market economy. The group has implemented its corporate social responsibilities with many big scale social welfare programmes, he added.

He affirmed that the Government, Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of Vietnam and Ministry of Defence would continue to create favourable conditions for its development.

He asked Viettel to review and complete restructuring to develop high quality human resource and administrative ability while paying attention to legal policies in overseas markets to limit risks in investment.

The group was also asked to focus on important projects to further contribute to the country, making the military stronger. This is a requirement of the nation and people.

He noted that Viettel should pay attention to protect its brand name as a national asset in its progress to develop into one of the famous groups in the region.

Viettel Chairman Major General Nguyen Manh Hung said with nearly 100 million subscribers, Viettel has become one of the world’s 15 largest telecom providers. The group has expanded its operations to the telecom electronic industry, high-tech weapon industry and cyber security industry, he said. Its telecom electronic and high-tech weapon industries have brought home VND12 trillion (US$528.6 million) in revenue, he said, adding that Viettel also built a national firewall to screen spam and launched a round-the-clock cyber security surveillance system.

Viettel also successfully studied and produced its telecom networks in Viet Nam and its overseas market such as 4G base transceiver station (BTS), tariff calculation system and national firewall system. Hung said Viettel is striving to become a strong telecom corporation with an annual growth of 10-15 per cent by 2020, earning VND350-400 trillion ($15.4-17.6 billion) and pre-tax profit of VND50-55 trillion and becoming one of the top 10 telecom firms in the world.

This marks the PM’s second visit to Viettel. The first time was in 2016 on its 10 year anniversary of overseas investment. — VNS