On Thursday, 16 May 2024, the AVPI together with the Victorian Government, hosted a roundtable discussion at the AVPI Font Door.
This was the first roundtable hosted at the AVPI Front Door, following its launch in March by the Prime Minister of Vietnam, H.E. Pham Minh Chinh. The AVPI and Victorian Government organised the event to discuss ‘Digital Cities: Leveraging Digital Transformation in Smart and Sustainable Urban Solutions in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) and Victoria’.
Louise Adams, COO at Aurecon and Australia’s Southeast Asia Business Champion for Vietnam, facilitated the roundtable which featured Mr Phan Van Mai, Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee. The roundtable also welcomed senior leaders from the HCMC, Victorian and Australian Governments, academics from the RMIT Centre for Urban Research, and industry leaders.
The roundtable explored opportunities for cultivating the digital literacy and proficiency required to drive digital transformation and leadership in sustainable urban solutions. Digital knowledge sharing is important, and there is a significant opportunity for HCMC and Victoria to deepen this collaboration through research centres and clusters to promote two-way knowledge sharing and drive greater digital innovation.
The discussion also highlighted that digital transformation for sustainable urban futures requires both government support and industry initiatives. Participants explored how government and industry can work more closely to address these challenges.
It was great to have leaders from HCMC and Victoria come together to collaborate and exchange best practices, knowledge, and their experiences. The AVPI will be developing a policy brief on the roundtable insights in the coming months.
