On the morning of March 24, in Ha Noi, the Viet Nam Union of Science and Technology Associations (VUSTA) organised the workshop “Contributing opinions on the open data portal opendata.vusta.vn”.
Effectively exploiting “digital resources”
Speaking at the workshop, Nguyen Quyet Chien, VUSTA Secretary-General, said that on December 22, 2024, the Politburo issued Resolution No. 57 on breakthroughs in the development of science, technology, innovation and national digital transformation. This is a resolution of strategic significance, of pillar nature, identified as an important “lever” for Viet Nam to make breakthroughs and rise in the new era.
In that context, VUSTA has proactively followed the guidelines of the Party and the State, gradually concretising them through key programmes and plans. Notably, the issuance of Plan No. 356 dated May 20, 2025 to implement Resolution No. 57 in a methodical and synchronous manner across the entire system.
In parallel, VUSTA Digital Transformation Project for the period 2026-2030, with a vision to 2035, has been developed with a long-term orientation and is currently being proposed for inclusion in the list of public investment projects. Not stopping at strategic orientation, Vusta has also promoted digitalisation in operational management, coordinating with the Viet Nam Fatherland Front to deploy an operational information system. Accordingly, document exchange is carried out quickly, data are gradually digitised, while enhancing interconnection among agencies from the central to local levels. These efforts are an important foundation, creating momentum for a comprehensive digital transformation across the entire system.
On that basis, a key content raised at today’s workshop is the project “Building the Open Data Portal of the Viet Nam Union of Science and Technology Associations”, implemented by the VUSTA Office in coordination with the Institute of Innovation and Digital Transformation.
According to Nguyen Quyet Chien, with a scale including 93 national sectoral associations, 34 local unions and more than 575 affiliated science and technology organisations, the VUSTA system possesses a very rich, diverse and highly valuable data source.
The building of a centralised digital data platform is not only an urgent requirement but also opens up opportunities to effectively exploit “digital resources”. The project’s goal is to gradually digitise comprehensively the organisation and activities of the system, forming a shared data repository to serve governance and operations; at the same time aiming to exploit data as a type of service, contributing to creating additional resources for development and improving the operational efficiency of member organisations.
However, he emphasised that building architecture and completing technical features is only the beginning. The core challenge lies in operating and effectively exploiting the system in practice.
“How to ensure the Data Portal operates smoothly, is user-friendly and easy to access; how financial and human resources are secured for long-term maintenance and development; and especially how coordination mechanisms among member organisations are designed to create consensus and promote data sharing are important issues at present. VUSTA expects that from the frank, in-depth and dedicated contributions of delegates, the project will be further improved and soon put into practice, thereby promoting effectiveness and making practical contributions to the digital transformation process of VUSTA system as well as of the nation,” Nguyen Quyet Chien said.
Standardising and unlocking VUSTA science and technology data repository
According to Nguyen Thi Bich Lan, Director of the Institute of Innovation and Digital Transformation, the Institute has been entrusted by the VUSTA to take the lead in the overall digital transformation project of VUSTA. Based on practical requirements, the project focuses on building a system of data catalogues and standardisation processes to serve the publication and release of data in accordance with national standards and approaching international practices. The project forms an Open Data Portal system capable of operating online, integrating full technical standards, data publication processes and specialised scientific reports. This is considered an initial platform, creating a premise for the implementation, connection and exploitation of data across the VUSTA system in a methodical and effective manner.
Introducing the process of building, structure, features and usage of the Vusta Open Data Portal, Associate Professor, Doctor Hoang Huu Hanh, Deputy Director of the National Digital Transformation Agency, Ministry of Science and Technology, said that the VUSTA Open Data Portal (address: https:///usta.idist.dev/) is a centralised digital platform implemented by VUSTA, serving the goal of digitising and comprehensively sharing the science and technology data repository of the entire VUSTA system nationwide.
The system is built according to the international-standard Open Data Portal model (similar to portals such as data.gov.vn, data.gov, open.canada.ca) but customised specifically for the research, science and engineering environment in Viet Nam. This is a core step in VUSTA’s digital transformation roadmap, laying the foundation for the core data infrastructure of the entire system.
Emphasising three core values that the system brings, Associate Professor, Doctor Hoang Huu Hanh said that the value lies in centralised, standardised data and unlocking the huge science and technology data repository of 500 member associations and research institutes, turning scattered data assets into a shared knowledge resource that can be exploited.
In terms of connectivity, it becomes a data interconnection hub between VUSTA and the National Data Portal, international academic systems and the programming community, creating an innovation ecosystem based on data. In terms of policy, it makes concrete contributions to the National Digital Transformation Programme and the Science and Technology Development Strategy for 2021-2030, demonstrating VUSTA’s pioneering role in the digital economy.
At the workshop, experts and scientists also said that in the current context, when data is increasingly identified as a national strategic resource and also the core foundation of the digital transformation process, the building of a Data Portal not only has technical significance but also makes an important contribution to innovating methods of management, sharing and exploitation of data across the entire system. This is precisely the shift from “data storage” to “creating value from data”.
