On the occasion of the Lunar New Year, Vietnam Social Security (VSS) General Director Nguyen The Manh spoke with Nhan dan (People) newspaper about the digital transformation efforts of the sector in ensuring social security for participants.

 VSS General Director Nguyen The Manh

Digital transformation is inevitable

As one of the leading agencies in terms of digital transformation, could you tell us about the digital transformation work of Vietnam Social Security in ensuring social security for participants?

Digital transformation has been identified as an indispensable and mandatory requirement to renew the operation method of the social insurance sector, contributing to successfully building the e-Government set by the National Assembly and the Government.

With the motto "putting people and businesses as the centre", VSS has focused all resources, and drastically deployed the application of technology and digital transformation with the final target of serving businesses, people and participants of social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance.

In the 2016-2020 period, Vietnam's social security industry has made breakthroughs in the application of information technology and digital transformation to serve the industry's activities and people and businesses. For four consecutive years in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, the Ministry of Information and Communications assessed that VSS has effectively deployed IT applications and online public services, ranking 2nd in the General Ranking of Ministries and Sectors, and 1st in the e-Government Ranking of Government Agencies.

Illustrative image (VSS)

Accordingly, VSS has built and completed a database with six basic information fields of more than 98 million people, corresponding to nearly 27 million households nationwide (which is the foundation for the formation of the national database on insurance); data linkage with more than 13,000 healthcare facilities nationwide and over 500,000 organisations and businesses using public services across the country as well as ministries and sectors. Each year, the VSS portal receives and handles nearly 100 million dossiers.

Particularly, VSS has put into operation VssID - the digital social insurance application, by which users can manage and control information about the process of participating, enjoying and benefiting from regimes and policies on social, health, and unemployment insurance. The app also provides services on social and health insurance that are convenient, easy, fast, saving time and travel costs. From June 1, 2021, VSS has deployed and used the health insurance card on the VssID application for medical care and health insurance nationwide. After a year, nearly 30 million people have installed and used the app.

At the virtual 38th ASEAN Social Security Association (ASSA) Board Meeting held last November, VSS was honoured in the category of information and technology with the launch of the VssID app which makes it easier for citizens to handle social and health insurance services quickly and conveniently.

Illustrative image (VSS)

In addition to perfecting the database and promoting the application of IT in the industry, over the years, VSS has also focused on promoting data connection, exchange and sharing with ministries and branches to continuously enrich and improve services. Currently, VSS has connected, exchanged and cross-checked two-way automatic data with the General Department of Taxation; connected and communicated with the Ministry of Justice on birth and death data to serve the issuance of health insurance cards for children under 6 years of age and to settle and pay death and funeral benefits; connected and shared business registration data with the Ministry of Planning and Investment; data linkage with nearly 13,000 healthcare facilities nationwide; handed over the entire database of households participating in health insurance to the Ministry of Health to build health records and electronic medical records. Especially regarding data and information connection and synchronisation with the national population database, 32 million citizens have been authenticated.

Effective support in COVID-19 prevention and control

In response to the complicated development of the COVID-19 pandemic over the past two years, particularly during the fourth wave, how has the digital data system of the social insurance industry contributed to pandemic prevention and control activities?

Amid the complicated development of the COVID-19 pandemic, social insurance agencies provided and shared information and data about social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance participants in a timely manner to serve pandemic prevention and control in localities, including making lists of people for COVID-19 testing and lists of vaccinated people, identifying underlying diseases, tracing COVID-19 patients and fighting the pandemic at industrial and processing zones.

Particularly, the data source helped us to quickly implement policies designed to support employers and employees facing difficulties caused by COVID-19 following Government resolutions and the Prime Minister’s decisions.

With a positive response from employers and employees, amid the context of the prolonged pandemic, I believe that VSS, with its experience and database, will coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to continue proposing and implementing social security policies of the Party and State to support employers and employees.

Putting people, businesses as the centre

In 2021, apart from regular tasks, the social insurance industry has implemented many policies to support employers and employees facing difficulties caused by COVID-19. What do you think about these policies?

Amid the complicated development of the pandemic, particularly the fourth wave, with the role of an agency specialising in implementing policies, the social insurance sector has actively and proactively proposed and coordinated with relevant ministries and sectors to submit to the Government and the Prime Minister for issuance policies to support employers and employers facing difficulties caused by COVID-19. They include Resolution 68/NQ-CP, Decision 23/2021/QĐ-TTg, Resolution 126/NQ-CP, Resolution 116/NQ-CP and Decision 28/2021/QĐ-TTg about policies to support employers and employees using the Unemployment Insurance Fund.

Right after these documents were issued, the social insurance sector focused on resolutely, effectively and promptly implementing these policies with the motto of helping employers and employees to get access to these policies as soon as possible.

After seven days of implementing Resolution 68/NQ-CP and Decision 23/2021/QĐ-TTg, the sector reduced the contribution to the labour accident and occupation disease insurance fund for 375,000 units with 11.238 million workers with an estimated amount of more than VND4.3 trillion.

As of December 28, 2021, the whole sector decided to temporarily suspend contribution to the retirement and survivorship fund for 846 units with 160,218 workers with a total amount of over VND1.1 trillion.  

Illustrative image (VSS)

After five days of implementing Resolution 116/NQ-CP and Decision 28/2021/QĐ-TTg, as of October 5, 2021, the sector notified to reduce contributions to the unemployment insurance fund from 1 per cent to zero per cent for 363,600 units with a total reduction of over VND7.5 trillion.

More than 12.7 million employees have received support from the unemployment insurance fund with a total amount of VND30.11 trillion.

The implementation of support policies on social insurance and unemployment insurance has helped to partly tackle difficulties for employees and helped businesses recover and maintain production.

The number of participants in voluntary social insurance increased strongly. In 2021, more than 1.45 million people joined voluntary social insurance, a year-on-year increase of 20 per cent.

Flexible adaptation in the new period

The impacts of the pandemic have required renewing operation methods of the sector. What are the key tasks and solutions of VSS to adapt to the new period?

The COVID-19 pandemic will continue to progress unpredictably. There is a high risk of the pandemic spreading. Operations of economic hubs, production and business activities of enterprises, particularly at industrial zones and big cities, will face many difficulties. The labour supply chain and the lives of workers have been seriously affected by the pandemic.

These issues require the social insurance sector to have flexible and suitable adaptation plans; continue renewing operation methods of the system, particularly in promoting the application of technology and digital transformation to improve the quality and efficiency of the implementation of social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance policies in the new situation in order to improve service quality for people, businesses and participants.

We will regularly review, build and propose amendments to shortcomings to complete policies and regulations about social insurance and health insurance.

The social insurance sector also needs to actively coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to support pandemic prevention and control tasks; proactively and actively tackle difficulties and barriers for businesses and people; and synchronously implement measures to ensure social security, particularly for vulnerable groups and those facing difficulties caused by COVID-19.

It is also necessary to renew communication contents, forms, and methods, focusing on modern communication channels and multimedia to help people get the best access to information relating to social insurance and health insurance.

Particularly, focusing on promoting digital transformation and information technology to service businesses and citizens; reviewing and simplifying administrative procedures, and completing infrastructure and data linkage with ministries and agencies./.