To increase digital trade between Australia and Vietnam, the two countries will cooperate in the fields of digital trade rules and regulatory environments, cyber and information security and critical infrastructure, and digital transformation of government services.
Increase implementation of digital trade rules and shape domestic regulatory environments to enable digital trade
Australia and Vietnam have made important commitments in regional and multilateral trade agreements to support digital trade and are engaged in efforts to strengthen these commitments, including through the AANZFTA e-commerce upgrade negotiations, and the ASEAN-Australia Digital Trade Standards initiative to promote the adoption and use of international standards in digital trade. To support and build upon these existing initiatives, Vietnam and Australia will develop a Digital Economy MoU, as a framework for a package of digital trade cooperation. The MoU will be focused on greater implementation of digital trade rules and shaping domestic regulatory environments as an enabler for digital trade, including to build consumer confidence and trust, reduce the gender digital divide and barriers to women’s engagement in digital trade. The MoU’s implementation will be phased, beginning with a scoping phase to prioritise and develop a work plan for cooperation activities to be implemented under the MoU. Australia would provide funding for activities under the work plan but would encourage co-contribution from Vietnam.
Work together on greater implementation of digital trade rules and shaping domestic regulatory environments as an enabler for digital trade
Key initiatives- Vietnam and Australia to develop a Digital Economy MoU as a framework for a package of
digital trade cooperation. The work plan, subject to agreement by both Governments, may
include activities to:
- Strengthen coordination, including through facilitating implementation, of Vietnam’s national level digitalisation plans and initiatives at the national, provincial and commune-level;
- Support development of regulatory frameworks, including a digital services market framework, to improve access to online goods and services for consumers and businesses;
- Facilitate cross-border data flows through supporting Vietnam to reduce regulations which have the effect of restricting or reducing data flows, and requiring data to remain in-country;
- Facilitate digital trade and electronic transactions through supporting Vietnam’s implementation of commitments including, among others, paperless trading, e-signatures, e-invoices and e-payments;
- Strengthen consumer protection and trust in the online environment, including Vietnam’s ability to deal with spam, and personal information protection and privacy;
- Share best-practices in telecommunications policy and regulation, including the development and uptake of 5G mobile broadband infrastructure; and
- Share and exchange experiences in the field of broadcasting and electronic information, and internet governance and management, including sharing lessons learnt on country code top level domain management.
Strengthen cyber and critical technology (including information security and critical infrastructure)
Through the framework of Australia’s Cyber and Critical Tech Cooperation Program, Australia will use and promote its government and industry expertise to engage Vietnam to strengthen cyber and critical technology resilience.
Collaborate to strengthen cyber and critical technology (including information security and critical infrastructure)
Key initiatives- Expand cooperation on cyber and critical technology (including information security and
critical infrastructure) through the framework of the Australian-funded Cyber and Critical
Tech Cooperation Program, with a focus on:
- Critical technology standards;
- Telecommunications and critical infrastructure security, with a focus on Resilient Smart Cities;
- Human rights online and ethical uses of technology such as AI; and
- Training on the application of international law in cyber space and the promotion of international cyber norms.
Sharing digital transformation experiences to support e-government agendas
Australia and Vietnam will expand existing capacity building and sharing of digital transformation experiences, under the existing MoU between Australia’s Digital Transformation Agency and Vietnam’s Office of the Government, to support Vietnam and Australia’s e-government agendas.
Expand existing capacity building and sharing of digital transformation experiences to support Vietnam and Australia’s e-government agendas
Key initiatives- Continue cooperation on e-government agendas through the framework of the MoU between Australia’s Digital Transformation Agency and Vietnam’s Office of the Government.