Four telecoms companies in Vietnam including Vietnamobile, state-owned Viettel Group and MobiFone were tipped to receive licences to test 5G in January 2019.

“Vietnam should be among the first nations to launch 5G services in order to move up in global telecom rankings,” Nguyen Manh Hung, the country’s minister of Information and Communications said last week, local media reported.

Government-owned Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) is the fourth company in line for a 5G testing licence. The government aims to begin testing in capital city Hanoi along with Ho Chi Minh City.

Hung, previously the chairman and general director of Viettel Group, wants to boost development of local equipment as part of an aim to position Vietnam as a major exporter of 5G gear. He also plans to make the licensing and approval process easier for Vietnam’s IT sector.

VNPT has already partnered with Nokia on 5G, while MobiFone signed an agreement with Samsung Electronics to cooperate on 4G and 5G earlier this year.

In 2017, Ericsson demonstrated 5G in the country in partnership with the Vietnam Authority of Radio Frequency Management.

Meanwhile MobiFone and VNPT are slated for privatisation by 2020, though Viettel is to remain in government hands.