Over the past few years, thousands of young Vietnamese entrepreneurs have come to the city to start their own company - whether it is developing innovative apps, mobile games, e-commerce or other tech solutions.
This emergence was quickly recognized by Vietnam's communist-led government. With an initiative titled 'Vietnam Silicon Valley,' it is allocating resources to create an environment in which startups can grow easily.
Last year, the government said it would offer legal and financial support to 2,600 startups over the next 10 years.
Combining Youth, Resources and Innovation
Bobby Liu of the Topica Founder Institute, a startup accelerator program, said that Vietnamese are good entrepreneurs, but that's not the only reason why Ho Chi Minh City is on the rise as a startup hub.
"Fifty percent of the population is below 35 years old and many of them have studied abroad," Liu told DW, adding that Vietnam was also a base for computer technology outsourced by international companies.
"Combine that with a forward-thinking mindset along with low expenses for living," he said.
And the Vietnamese government is hoping that more people will start their own company. Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue announced last year that Vietnam should have 1 million businesses by 2020, up from the current 500,000.
But becoming successful isn't easy. An estimated 90 percent of startups fail, often due to a lack of funding.
Growing Potential for Success
One of the country's success stories is Ticketbox, developed by 33-year old Tuan Anh Tran. In 2013, he started the online platform with which people can easily buy tickets for concerts and other events.
According to Tran, in the first nine months, Ticketbox grew 24 times its original size. The company recently expanded to Singapore and Thailand.
"I never expected to be the owner of a company that is active in three different countries," Tran told DW. "All I wanted is to build something that would help Vietnam."
Experts say that Vietnam is full of opportunities for entrepreneurs. Like many economies in Southeast Asia, Vietnam is experiencing very positive growth and the World Bank estimates that GDP will grow 6.5 percent in 2017.
Source : DW
