Da Nang (VNA) – Experts have givenrecommendations to the central city of Da Nang to become a smart city in thenear future.

Da Nang boasts high potential to become a leading smart cityin the country, said Pham The Truong, General Director of Microsoft Vietnam at aconference in the city on September 26.

The city has opened its door to technology investors, he said,adding that in the future, Microsoft will work with Da Nang in varioustechnology sectors, contributing to the city’s road towards becoming a smartcity.

Initially, Microsoft will install a programme to protectchildren on the internet and support the training of teachers in Da Nang. Inthe future, the firm will pilot smart solutions in the city, while continuingto invest in technology and share experience with Da Nang, said Truong.

Nguyen Quang Thanh, Director of the Da Nang Department ofInformation and Communications, said the city hopes to partner with Microsoftin education, health, technology and especially data collection and analysis.

He expressed his hope that through the conference, Da Nang citycan learn from the experience of other countries, thus building a programme.

He said that the city will strengthen internationalcooperation, while attracting more resources from international organisationsand businesses to build a smart city.

Participants at the event proposed several solutions for DaNang to become a smart city, including applying the Internet of Things instrengthening security through the supervision of cameras and smartphones; thebuilding of smart parking places and the installing of system to detect illegalparking and manage public transport; and the construction of smart building; andthe developing of a platform to gather data on damage from disasters to servethe recovery process.

Da Nang’s smart city project for 2018-2025 was issued inDecember 2018. The project has goals and roadmaps for smart city building, aswell as a list of major works for priority.

The project will be implemented in three phases. In thefirst phase until 2020, the city will build infrastructure and a smart dataplatform to support all applications of a smart city.

In the second phase from 2020 to 2025, the applicationspiloted in the previous phase will be made smarter to serve businesses, localsand tourists, while urban management will be transformed from traditionalmethods to data-based methods.

Meanwhile, in the third phase from 2025 to 2030, communityapplications and in-depth technology such as artificial intelligence andvirtual reality will be developed.

Over the years, Da Nang has rolled out several measures tobecome a smart city.

In August this year, DaNang won an Asia-Oceanian Computing Industry Organisation (Asocio) Smart CityAward for its outstanding initiatives of a smart city during the Asocio Smart CitySummit in Bangkok,Thailand. Da Nang was one of eight cities from 24 economic members of theAsocio to receive the smart city award this year.

Da Nang is planning tobecome a smart city and the first in Vietnam to join the smart citynetwork of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) by 2030.

The city approved a framework plan in 2018with information and technology infrastructure.

The plan focuses on smart management, smarteconomy, smart environment, smart living, smart citizens and smart traffic tobuild the city’s link with the 126 strong smart city network.

Da Nang was the first city in Vietnam tolaunch an e-government system in 2014, and transferred the system to 16cities and provinces in 2016. According to a report, Da Nang’s e-governmentsystem had been used by 225 agencies.-VNA