Identifying S&T, innovation, and digital transformation as key driving forces for growth in the new period, the Provincial Party Committee’s Executive Board issued Resolution No.17-NQ/TU dated February 27, 2026, on breakthroughs in developing S&T, innovation, and digital transformation for the 2026-2030 period, with an orientation to 2035. Immediately following, various levels and sectors quickly materialized this with clear goals and roadmaps, integrating technology into every development field, step-by-step upgrading productivity, management efficiency, and the competitiveness of the economy.

Following more than half a year of deployment, digital infrastructure continues to receive heavy investment with 204 new 5G broadcasting stations, a more than fivefold increase compared to the whole of 2025, raising the coverage rate to approximately 40%. 100% of provincial-level agencies and communes have been connected to the specialized data transmission network, shaping a foundation for governance and workflow handling in the digital environment.

The expanded infrastructure drives the innovation ecosystem to shape up clearly. The Điện Biên provincial Innovation Exchange officially entered operations, attracting five enterprises to work directly at the Incubation Space (the Innovation Common House). The entire province currently logs 132 innovative startup enterprises in high-tech agriculture, tourism, digital technology, and services, while simultaneously supporting five S&T enterprises in elevating their technology application capacities, reaching 50% of the annual plan.

Perfecting mechanisms and policies to create development momentum, two draft resolutions on supporting S&T development, innovation, digital transformation, and the management of state-budget-funded S&T tasks have been finalized and submitted to the provincial People’s Council for consideration and enactment, broadening opportunities to mobilize social resources for technological research and application.

From that foundation, multiple S&T application models are being deployed, creating new growth momentum in developing coffee and macadamia raw material zones linked with deep processing, utilizing unmanned aerial vehicles in agricultural production, building AI platforms for agriculture, developing smart tourism, and expanding e-commerce and cashless payments, step-by-step affirming the role of S&T and digital transformation in elevating production values and driving digital economic development.

The Agricultural AI Assistant - one of the province’s four major S&T and digital transformation challenges in 2026 - was constructed to support citizens, cooperatives, enterprises, and management agencies in looking up information regarding soil, climate, cultivation techniques, pest prevention, GAP-standard production workflows, growing zones, and agricultural consumption markets.

To build the “brain” for AgriApp, the agricultural sector has digitized 129 technical workflows for core crops alongside data on land, forests, and numerous specialized documents. The Department of Agriculture and Environment coordinated with relevant agencies and units to build the AgriApp Demo and put it into trial operations on web and Android platforms at the address https://ai-nongnghiep.dienbien.gov.vn/. By the end of the second quarter of 2026, the system logged over 5,000 registered accounts and recorded more than 30,000 interactions.

Currently, units continue to perfect the data repository, supplement image-based pest recognition functions, and connect with sectoral databases to form a modern, transparent digital agriculture, moving toward deploying the software in practical implementation in the coming time.

At the end of June, Sam Mứn commune deployed AgriApp to serve the public. Following training classes, specialized cadres directly provided guidance to each village and hamlet, helping residents familiarize themselves with the platform. Vừ A Chía, Deputy Director of the Sam Mứn commune General Service Center, noted that by simply entering a question or using voice commands, residents can quickly access information on production techniques, pest control, and crop care workflows, contributing to upgrading production efficiency.

Artificial intelligence is also generating a clear transformation in administrative reform. At the Điện Biên Phủ ward Public Administrative Service Center, two AI reception robots were put into operation at the beginning of 2026, supporting citizens in looking up procedures, guiding dossiers, and providing information via voice or QR codes. Thanks to this, residents are more proactive in dossier preparation while cadres significantly reduce direct consultation time.

Recently, the Center also introduced the virtual assistant MISA ONE AI to support document lookups and administrative drafting. Lương Mạnh Hùng, Deputy Director of the Điện Biên Phủ ward Public Administrative Service Center, stated that the system helps shorten work processing times and upgrades accuracy in lookups, creating conditions for cadres to concentrate more on professional tasks and public service.

The efficiency of digital transformation is demonstrated through concrete figures. From July 1, 2025, to May 31, 2026, the Điện Biên Phủ ward Public Administrative Service Center received 11,037 dossiers, within which 6,616 were online dossiers, and resolved 10,915 dossiers, with 99.6% processed ahead of schedule. Notably, 100% of fee-charging dossiers executed cashless payments, contributing to building a modern, transparent, and convenient administration.

While the application of S&T in Điện Biên previously stopped mostly at experimental models, many enterprises and cooperatives have now boldly invested technology into production, creating distinct changes in productivity, quality, and economic efficiency.

The drip irrigation system for the passion fruit cultivation zone of the Cooperative for a Developing Điện Biên is completely controlled via smartphones. With just a few operations, water and fertilizer are supplied accurately to each plant base according to each growth stage, replacing the manual irrigation method that heavily consumed labor.

Recently, the cooperative applied artificial intelligence in cultivating green J chilis. An AI-integrated soil nutrition measurement device quickly analyzes moisture, pH, and nutrient indexes, automatically outputting care recommendations and controlling the fertilizer mixing and drip irrigation system to fit the plants’ demands.

Trần Văn Sơn, Director of the Cooperative, stated that thanks to applying S&T and digital transformation, passion fruit productivity reached 15 to 20 tons/ha, and green J chilis achieved 70 to 80 tons/ha. More importantly, labor and input material costs decreased significantly, while product quality and profits were both elevated.

S&T and digital transformation are gradually becoming the new growth engine of Điện Biên province. After more than half a year of executing Resolution No.17-NQ/TU, the province’s digital economy proportion is estimated to reach over 16% of GRDP, heading toward the target of 17% by the end of 2026 and over 25% by 2030.

To realize double-digit growth targets, S&T, innovation, and digital transformation are no longer merely supporting elements but are becoming a fresh source of momentum. When digital transformation is deployed synchronously, innovation is driven, and technology continues to spread to every sector and field, Điện Biên will enhance its competitiveness and shape a baseline for rapid, sustainable development.