Vietnamese consumers could see the first local e-commerce fully established by 2004, as a development project is launched by supermarket group Saigon Co-op and supported by the Ho Chi Minh City government.

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Ngo Duong Hoang Thao, acting director general of contract software creator SDC, a joint venture created in 1998 by SpaceBel of Belgium, Saigon Postel and the Vietnam Information Technology Sub-institute, told the Saigon Times Daily: “This is a first for a supermarket in Vietnam. The e-commerce project has investment capital of VNÐ1.038bn (US$67,750), one-tenth that for a similar project in Europe.”
 
“The e-commerce facility is scheduled for test-running in Q3 of next year and official operation in Q1 2004.”


Thao explained that Saigon Co-op hoped to attract more foreign tourists with the e-commerce site, as it will make it easy for them to use credit cards. He cautioned however that the firm will need to hire information technology officials to ensure the smooth running of the system.


The HCMC government has pledged to invest VNÐ500m in the programme, as part of its ongoing commitment to improving IT.

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