The State Archives and Records Administration of Vietnam (SARA) held a series of conferences from 18/9 to 26/9 to address record-keeping challenges faced by local governments and to transfer digital archive management software. The conferences, held in the north, central, and south regions, were attended by leaders representing SARA, FPT Corporation, and representatives from Departments of Home Affairs, Departments of Science and Technology, and People's Committees across the country.
SARA transferred the digital archive management software, and FPT donated document digitization software to 34 provinces and cities nationwide.
An FPT representative explained that the digital archive management system is a national archive system developed in collaboration with FPT. It utilizes modern technology to ensure long-term storage, security, and scalability. The platform manages the entire document lifecycle and creates standardized data connections between central and local governments.
 |
The archiving software will be transferred by SARA to localities for connection to the national digital archive platform. Photo: SARA |
The archiving software will be transferred by SARA to localities for connection to the national digital archive platform. Photo: SARA
The donated FPT iSOMA document digitization software has been evaluated and certified by SARA as meeting digitization and archiving standards. This technology converts paper documents into digital formats compliant with data structure regulations. The software supports scanning paper documents (like administrative records and archival materials), image cleaning, optical character recognition (OCR), content review, and packaging into complete digitized data. After processing, the digitized documents are directly uploaded to the National Digital Archive Platform, saving time, increasing accuracy, and ensuring security.
 |
FPT donates FPT iSOMA document digitization software to representatives of 15 northern provinces and cities. Photo: FPT |
FPT donates FPT iSOMA document digitization software to representatives of 15 northern provinces and cities. Photo: FPT
According to an FPT representative, using FPT iSOMA not only allows local archives to easily digitize hundreds of thousands of document pages but also ensures standardization, searchability, and usability for government management, public services, and businesses. This is crucial for achieving the government's digital transformation goals.
The iSOMA document digitization software is currently implemented in several provinces and cities, demonstrating its effectiveness in large digitization projects, such as Han Nom woodblock archives and administrative records. Local representatives report that the software significantly reduces manual work, improves management efficiency, and increases transparency in archiving.
 |
FPT iSOMA document digitization software has been deployed in several projects. Photo: FPT |
FPT iSOMA document digitization software has been deployed in several projects. Photo: FPT
Dang Thanh Tung, Director of SARA, emphasized that digital transformation and technology application are essential, given the Party and Government's focus on implementing Resolution 57. This presents both an unprecedented opportunity and challenge, requiring faster and more decisive action. The entire archives sector must collaborate with technology companies to transition from traditional to digital archiving, building a modern shared database to serve the country's development. The Vietnamese archives sector is entering phase two of its digital transformation, aiming to digitize 30% of processed documents to lay the foundation for 100% digitization by 31/12/2026.
Pham Thuy Loan, Chief Operating Officer of FPT IS's Government and Public Sector, stated that FPT has supported SARA's digital transformation journey from developing legal frameworks and central technology infrastructure to deploying practical tools locally. Besides software deployment, FPT also assists local archives with installation, training, technical support, and digitization services.
"Today's achievement is the result of our enduring partnership with SARA, spanning from legal framework development to technology platform creation and practical implementation. During the legal phase, FPT contributed technical expertise and feedback to the 2024 Electronic Archives Law," Loan added.
At the conferences, delegates discussed the challenges faced by local archives during their digital transformation, particularly in processing and managing records after mergers. The sheer volume of records presents a significant obstacle. SARA leadership pledged to support localities with guidance documents, procedures, implementation methods, and specific technology solutions to comprehensively address these issues.
In the future, FPT will continue collaborating with SARA to expand deployment, enhance digitization capacity, standardize data, and exploit document value, contributing to the development of a digital government, society, and economy in Vietnam.
Yen Chi
