The Ho Chi Minh City administration has requested that all of its departments, agencies and offices begin switching to electronic invitations and other paperless documents by July 20.

According to Tuoi Tre, invitations sent by municipal agencies or state-owned firms run by the municipal administration will now be delivered via email or SMS. At present, an estimated 2,200 paper invitations are sent out annually by such organizations.

The move is intended not only to conserve paper and money – the city stands to save as much as VND390 million a year by going paperless – but also to boost information and communication technology within the city’s governmental departments. Municipal authorities also hope to create a more transparent and efficient administration network through the use of electronic documents.

So far, the city administration itself has already made the switch and is seeing positive results. By the end of the month, municipal officials will also require any proposals submitted to the city to include a digital copy.

[Photo via Binh Phuoc Gov]