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His Excellency Deputy Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam, Pham Gia Khiem, Your Excellencies,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen!
I feel honored to welcome all of you to this December gathering
for the first ever Hanoi Forum on Information-Communication Technology.
Since this is the first Hanoi Forum to discuss the issues pertaining to Information-Communication Technology, currently among the most significant topics with direct bearing on our modern life.
This is indeed a special occasion worthy of great celebration.
At the outset, let me express my sincere thanks to His Excellency Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Khiem for taking time out from his busy schedule to attend this forum.
Without his assistance, this gathering would have been impossible.
We are here to discuss some of the most timely and urgent issues facing the world today.
The profound and rapid changes wrought by globalization in recent times has been even further accelerated by innovations in IT technologies and the free flow of information that it facilitates.
In the process, the world has been transformed.
Today, the concept of distance and boundaries has given way to the idea of the world as a single global village.
As globalism creates a single common market, we seem to be heading toward one culture, one region or one political community.
It has become more and more evident that all nations are destined to live together in this ever-shrinking world, and so certain trends towards convergence are inevitable.
At the same time, the world has also become much more aggressive.
Developments in ICT technology has been profoundly changing the quality and style of life, while the spread of the internet has generated new spaces and patterns of communication.
As unlimited competition across national boundaries becomes normal practice, we must understand how important ICT is to the competitive edge one enjoys, as well as the role and value of human resources in the achievement of ICT dominance.
For these reasons, this First Hanoi Forum on ICT, co-organized by Vietnam National University, Hanoi and the Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies, is of particular significance and necessity for all of us.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Over the next day and a half, the scientists, engineers, practitioners, managers, businessmen, and government leaders gathered here will engage in intensive discussions that report on state-of-the-art technology as well as on on-going research on ICT theory and practice.
They will also be sharing knowledge and experiences; discussing challenges, opportunities, solutions, and models for practice and application; and thinking through a possible roadmap for ICT development.
I hope that these discussions will make substantial contributions to promoting ICT development in Vietnam in particular and the whole world in general.
By suggesting ways to overcome crises in this era of global competition, I hope that the Hanoi Forum on ICT will make good on its mission to maximize opportunities that help realize our great potential as a global, integrated community, thus contributing to a world of mutual cooperation and prosperous co-existence.
It is my sincere wish that given the paramount importance of ICT in modern life, this forum will not prove to be only a one-time exercise, but instead will provide a good start that will be followed up with similar workshops and forums in the future.
Finally, I would like to express my sincere thanks to Vietnam National University, Hanoi for hosting this Forum.
VNU and the Korea Foundation for Advanced Studies will continue our cooperation to develop this annual event to be a leader of its kind in the field of ICT in Asia.
I wish you all successful and productive discussions.
Thank you.
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