HCM City (VNA) – A workshop on enabling access to the digital economy of micro,small and medium sized enterprises (MSMEs) was held in Ho Chi Minh City onSeptember 12, as part of the ongoing 24th APEC Small and Medium EnterprisesMinisterial Meeting.

Delegatesfrom APEC member economies discussed the digital economy, the importance of thedigital economy for MSMEs, and challenges for such enterprises while accessingthe digital economy, among others.

Accordingto Michael Mudd, Managing Director of Asia Policy Partners LLC, the digital economy is driven by data. “Itis not just about the technology; it is putting data at the centre of thebusiness.”

Mudd also cited statistics that about 1.7megabytes of new information will be created every second for every human by2020.  In 2016 alone, over 1.5 billion smart phones were sold worldwide, withcameras and sensors capable of collecting all kinds of data.

“MSMEs need to embrace Digital Mobility to attract and retain customers. Privacyand data protection are vital to give customers confidence.  In addition, APECeconomies need to remove barriers to cross-border trade in data”.  

Meanwhile, Ted Tan, Deputy ChiefExecutive of SPRING Singapore, shared that it is inevitable that enterpriseswill face disruption from the digital technology. However, there will be manynew opportunities to grow. Increasing connectivity and the growth of the digitaleconomy around the world will result in the opening up of new markets and newopportunities for collaboration.

The digitaleconomy is expected to contribute two trillion USD of additional economic output globally by 2020, while in the AsiaPacific region, cybersecurity market alone is forecast to reach 10.5 billionUSD by 2020, he cited.

Lawyer Tran Thanh, Managing Director of Nelson and Partner Lawfirm, said thatin the digital economy, there are room for Vietnamese MSMEs to thrive in manyfields like services, logistics and especially agriculture. As one of theworld’s leading rice exporters, he held Vietnam could make ultimate use ofresources with just small number of labours if it could apply technology inrice preservation and qualityimprovement.

MSMEs account for over 97 percent of allenterprises and employ over half of the workforce across APEC economies. MSMEscontribute significantly to economic growth, with MSMEs' share of GDP rangingfrom 20 percent to 50 percent in most APEC economies. However, they account foronly 35 percent or less of direct exports.

Established in 1989, APEC comprises 21 economies, with Vietnam joining in 1998.SMEs employ more than 50 percent of the workforce and contribute over 40percent of the GDP in Vietnam.-VNA