Active and selective
In 2019, despite numerous difficulties and challenges, the Vietnamese economy continued to achieve impressive results in major fields, especially in attracting foreign investment.
Almost all indicators of Viet Nam’s business environment and national competitiveness have witnessed constant improvements as evidenced by increasingly better global rankings.
Specifically, Viet Nam was placed 67th out of 141 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report, up 10th places compared to the previous year.
Viet Nam also jumped three ranks on the 2019 Global Innovation Index (GII) to place 42nd out of 129 economies around the world.
In addition, the disbursement of FDI projects in Viet Nam reached a record US$20.4 billion – the highest annual result so far. Total registered capital exceeded US$38 billion – the highest in the past decade.
The country become a strategic investment destination for many multinational groups and is stepping up to a higher position in global value chains.
Significant contributions to these encouraging results came from the business community, including domestic and foreign investors. At the Annual Viet Nam Business Forum (VBF) has held, Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung emphasized the role of and contributions by FDI companies to Viet Nam’s development, especially their linkages with and support for domestic businesses.
Minister Nguyen Chi Dung affirmed that in the coming period, Viet Nam will take the initiative in attracting foreign investment in a selective manner, focusing on quality, effectiveness, technology and environmental protection.
Removing barriers
Reiterating Government’s efforts to improve the business environment and attract investment, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung said in the time ahead, the Government will focus on solving some issues, including prioritizing investment in synchronous infrastructure development and helping to create intelligent, effective connections, thus reducing costs and enhancing the efficiency and competitiveness for businesses, investors and the economy.
In particular, the Government encourages strong investment in education and science-technology, improving the quality of human resources, and supporting the business community towards a circular economy and innovation in business activities, Deputy PM Dung added.
He revealed that the Government will deploy many specific programs and plans to implement guidelines and policies encouraging and creating favorable conditions for enterprises in all the three sectors (agriculture, industry and service) towards co-development.
The Deputy PM also touched upon the orientations of effectively developing and applying the e-Government, and continuing to improve the business and investment environment to ensure transparency, convenience, stability and sustainable development of businesses.
Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Chairman Vu Tien Loc said that in 2020 and ensuing years, the government will continue striving to remove barriers to FDI businesses and connect them to domestic small and medium companies, tightening the linkages between the Vietnamese economy and foreign economies through free trade agreements.
He requested FDI companies to consider building connections with Vietnamese small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as their social responsibility. “Their connections with domestic SMEs will help strengthen the position of FDI companies in the Vietnamese economy and ensure their sustainable growth,” he said./.