Universal service in Vietnam: the role of government
| Published date | 12 March 2018 |
| Pages | 178-190 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/DPRG-05-2017-0028 |
| Date | 12 March 2018 |
| Author | Manh Thai Do,Morten Falch,Idongesit Williams |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Information management & governance,Information policy |
Universal service in Vietnam:
the role of government
Manh Thai Do, Morten Falch and Idongesit Williams
Abstract
Purpose –This paper aims to look at theuniversal service policy in Vietnam interval 2005-2010 from a
stakeholder perspective to clarifythe role ofstakeholders aswell as initiativesused to implementthe policy.
Design/methodology/approach –This paper applies the stakeholderframework of Papazafeiropoulou
and Pouloudi(2000) to identify which actors implemented the universalservice policy and what initiatives
were used by the central government.In addition, this paper also uses the qualitative method to clarify
the stakeholders’position on performing the universal servicepolicy. The qualitative interview is recruited
to verify andtriangulate the result of the secondary data.
Findings –This paper finds that the Vietnamesegovernment controlled the universal service policy via
an administrative regime that the central government ordered and other stakeholders followed; the
universal service policyfocused much on delivering universal service andinfrastructure; however, there
was lack of initiatives risingawareness of rural users about the benefit of the internet, or training courses
on improving rural users’ skills to usethe internet; and stakeholders implementing the universal service
policy were state entities in which the national government played a central role, and there was no
involvementof the private sector and the civil society.
Originality/value –Little researchon universal service policies in Vietnam has been made. By analyzing
the Vietnamese case, achievements and drawbacks in implementing universal service policies are
identifiedand lessons for other developingcountries are derived.
Keywords Telecommunications, Universal service, Stakeholders, Government, Initiatives, Vietnam
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Today, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in general and telec ommunications
realm in particular, plays a vital role in the social and economic development across countries.
Promoting the application of advances of ICT to build the Information Society as w ell as to
achieve the Millennium Development Goals is one of the critical missions that the Internation al
Telecommunication Union has suggested nations to carry out (WSIS, 2003).
In past years, there has been profound research on universal service, especially concentrating
on study of the role of government/policy (Samarajiva, 2000;Lee et al., 2003;Gillett et al.,
2004;Lee and Chan-Olmsted, 2004;Fan, 2005;Frieden, 2005;Gillwald, 2005;Falch, 2007;
Picot and Wernick, 2007;Lam, 2013). Or on finding the models/tools furthering the penetration
rate of universal service (Peha, 1999;Falch and Anyimadu, 2003;Long, 2010). However, there
are only few studies on the role of stakeholders in implementing the provision of u niversal
service, especially research in the role of the central governments in developing countries and
their initiatives used to enhance the development of universal service.
This paper examines the role of stakeholders in carrying out the Vietnamese universal
service policy and their strategies in Vietnam in 2005-2010 to identify their impact and
relationships in the course of the implementation of the policy. The paper attempts to
answer the following questions:
Manh Thai Do is PhD Fellow
at Department of Electronic
Systems, Aalborg
University, Copenhagen,
Denmark. Morten Falch is
Associate Professor at
Department of
Development and Planning,
Aalborg University,
Lautrupvang, Ballerup,
Denmark.
Idongesit Williams is PhD
Fellow at Department of
Electronic Systems, Center
for Communications Media
and Information
Technologies, Aalborg
University, Copenhagen,
Denmark.
Received 27 May 2017
Revised 10 August 2017
Accepted 16 August 2017
PAGE 178 jDIGITAL POLICY, REGULATION AND GOVERNANCE jVOL. 20 NO. 2 2018, pp. 178-190, ©Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2398-5038 DOI 10.1108/DPRG-05-2017-0028
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