On 12/07/2011, the Prime Minister has written an official letter No. 1138/TTg-QHQT allowed Ministry of Information and Communications to receive and deploy the expanded project "Improvement computer usage and public internet acess ability in Vietnam ". The project will be implemented at 400 public libraries and 1 500 cultural post offices across 40 provinces nationwide over five years (2011 to 2016),
The project has a total value of USD 50.5 million, of which over 33.6 million by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and Microsoft Corporation funds.
The long-term objective of the project is provide opportunities for people in rural areas to benefit from the services provided by ICT brings, improve the lives of people through access to modern technology and shorten the digital gap between rural and urban areas .
The selected points will be equipped with computers, specialized equipment to better serve the needs of broadband Internet access and understand people"s information.
With slogan “computers and the Internet will enrich our lives”, the project will respond to the increasing ICT needs of Vietnam’s rural communities, contribute to poverty reduction by promoting job and vocational training opportunities and expand access to e-government services at the local level.
Over the course of the five year project, computers with broadband Internet access will be installed across nearly 2000 public libraries and cultural post offices.
At the ceremony, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Thanh Hung highly appreciated the expanded project and expressed his thanks to coordination among Ministries, central and local Agencies and the support from BMGF.
The project is co-ordinated to implement from other partners, namely the Government Office, the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Investment, Public Security and Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Vietnam Post and Telecommunication Corporation (VNPT), the Military Telecom Corporation (Viettel), the National Library and provincial Department of Information and Communications leaders, as well as the local communities.
