IT Capacity Building for Government Officials in Vietnam

Report of

SEMINAR AGENDA on ‘Human Capacity Building for Workforce in the Field of Information Communications technology and the Facilitation of Human Resources Exchanges’

Main Objective:

To design and operationalize a professional development framework for the ICT training of Vietnamese government officials (leaders and end users) that is aligned with the vision and mission of APEC.

Sub Objectives:

(1)To identify the ICT training needs of government officials in Vietnam (Needs analysis);

(2)To construct a customisable model that adopts a holistic approach towards the effective ICT training of government officials (Customisable effective ICT training model);

(3)To raise awareness of effective ICT use among government officials that allow them to critically examine beliefs and develop powerful images of effective ICT use (Awareness of effective ICT use);

(4)To design and implement curriculum for ICT training of government officials that is based on sound instructional design principles (ICT training curriculum design and implementation)

(5)To support the building, networking and co-ordination of ICT training centres (ICT training centres);

(6)To align the professional development framework to other APEC countries (Alignment to APEC’s vision and mission);

(7)To integrate ICT training curriculum in the training programme of government officials, i.e. ICT training is not a stand-alone, it should be integrated as part of the professional development of government officials (Integration of ICT training into overall professional development of government officials);

(8)To set up a framework of standards and competencies for ICT use among government officials;

(9)To provide guidelines for project management of ICT training projects;

(10)To prioritise the abovementioned sub-objectives;

(11)To prepare a proposal for ICT training framework/programme of government officials in Vietnam; and

(12)To identify financial resources/funding bodies that the projects can draw upon.

Action Plans:

Needs Analysis

  • To identify the gaps between actual and desired performances of government officials in the use of ICT.
  • To identify the gaps between actual and desired state of professional development programme for ICT training of government officials.
  • To acknowledge the language abilities and preferences of government officials, especially senior ones.
  • To develop the concepts of ICT training for government officials.

Customisable Effective ICT Training Models

  • To provide a better linkage between professional development programme and the workplace.
  • To create a balance between just-in-case training (basic repertoire of skills, attitude and knowledge) and just-in-time training.
  • To complement formal training with informal/formal sharing sessions of best practices of ICT use.
  • To provide opportunities for government officials to apply their newly acquired skills and knowledge in the workplace.
  • To provide support and incentives for government officials to update and upgrade themselves as part of the lifelong learning process.
  • To build a learning community within and across departments and provinces for effective ICT use among government officials.

Awareness of Effective ICT Use

  • To create opportunities for government officials to examine critically their beliefs of ICT use in their workplace.
  • To document and show best practices of ICT use in the workplace.
  • To guide government officials to form visions of effective ICT use in their workplace.
  • To highlight to the senior government officials their pivotal roles in effective ICT use and training.
  • To raise the awareness of practices and standards adopted by other countries with respect to e-government and e-commerce (E.g. E-government and SARS in China).

***ICT Training Curriculum Design and Implementation

  • To design the curriculum for ICT training of government officials that is based on sound instructional design principles.
  • To identify the opportunities and limitations of different medium of delivering training (e.g. online learning, CD-ROMs, textbooks, chats, discussion boards, face-to-face lectures and tutorials).
  • To plan for and coordinate the outsourcing of training to private companies, higher education and vocational institutions, and overseas partners.
  • To develop a database of training materials (online and offline, computer-based and non-computer-based), vendors, software, textbooks, services and opportunities available to government departments and officials.
  • To allow for different learning paths for different officials with respect to a set of standards.

ICT Training Centres

  • To carry out a pilot project of training trainers programme (formative and summative evaluation of programme).
  • To adopt a fan-approach towards ICT training (training trainers from government and private sectors to train government officials in the first phase, who will then join the initial team to train other colleagues in subsequent phases).
  • To coordinate and direct ICT training of government officials in various ministries and provinces.
  • To network and coordinate ICT training programmes in schools, higher education, vocational institutes, private companies and government agencies.
  • To carry out the research and development of learning management systems and content.
  • To set and refine standards of ICT training for government officials.
  • To assess and enlarge the role of higher education institutions (focus on training at the CIO levels, and mobilizing of students to support training of government as part of community service).

Alignment to APEC’s Vision and Mission

  • To align the standards of ICT competencies for government officials to other APEC countries.
  • To adapt and refine the standards of ICT competencies from other government bodies and industries in the APEC countries.
  • To draw upon the experiences and expertise of other APEC countries.