The US Trade & Development Agency is funding technical assistance to transform the ways Ho Chi Minh City manages its daily operations through data analytics.

“Ho Chi Minh City has an ambitious smart cities agenda, and USTDA is an ideal partner to support its goals,” said Todd Abrajano, USTDA chief operating officer. “Our partnership will help the city deploy cutting-edge ICT technologies and advanced data analytics that innovative US companies are ready to supply.”

The funding should help the city develop implementation plans for an intelligent operations centre, a smart cities priority that will aggregate real-time urban data onto an intuitive dashboard platform that can be leveraged by local leaders.

Through the use of these smart technologies and the application of data analytics, Ho Chi Minh City can enhance service delivery to its rapidly growing population and advance economic development.

“This is a watershed moment for Vietnam and US business to drive new partnerships, expand new opportunities and engage the critical sectors in Vietnam,” said Daniel Kritenbrink, US ambassador to Vietnam. “With the United States as a partner, Vietnam has the potential to leapfrog into a modern, digitally enabled economy, advancing beyond other countries in the region.”

Virginia-based Winbourne Consulting will execute the assistance on behalf of the USTDA’s grantee, Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Information & Communications.

Le Quoc Cuong, deputy director of the Department of Information & Communications, added: “The signing of this grant agreement for the technical assistance to develop the intelligent operations centre for Ho Chi Minh City is the most concrete evidence for the strong development of the comprehensive partnership in smart cities between Ho Chi Minh City and the United States.”

The USTDA’s support of this project aligns with digital economy priorities of the administration including the Digital Connectivity & Cyber-Security Partnership and the US-Asean Smart Cities Partnership.

The USTDA helps companies create US jobs through the export of US goods and services for priority development projects in emerging economies. The USTDA links US businesses to export opportunities by funding project preparation and partnership building activities that develop sustainable infrastructure and foster economic growth in partner countries.