Vietnam has jumped five grades to 56th out of the 66 countries and territories in the global 2009 information technology (IT) competitiveness index, conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit.

The Business Software Alliance, which sponsored the making of the report, announced the study in Hanoi Oct. 6.

This was the third year that the study has been conducted, to assess and compare the IT environment in countries and territories, and define priority areas to improve the competitiveness of the IT sector.

This year saw Vietnam climb up in the ranking for the first time. The country ranked 61 out of 66 last year and 61 out of 64 the year before.

At a press conference held to announce the results of the study in Hanoi, Atty Claro Parlade, director of software policy for BSA Asia-Pacific, said the fact that Vietnamese government keeps supporting the IT industry’s development was an important factor. This could accelerate the country’s economic recovery and create the momentum for Vietnam’s long-term development, he added.

The study covered six major areas namely business environment, IT infrastructure, human resources, legal environment, research and development environment and support for the development of the IT industry.

In addition, the study took into account the use of mobile phones and the latest data relating to IT.

The top four in the ranking are the US, Finland, Sweden, and Canada. Among Asian countries and territories, Singapore ranks ninth, followed by Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea.