Building a powerful and prosperous Vietnam

Nguyen Hong Dien - Minister of Industry and Trade

The industry and trade sector plays a role in making true the ambition of building a powerful and prosperous Vietnam. Last year was the first to implement the resolution of the 13th National Party Congress, as well as Vietnam’s Socioeconomic Development Strategy 2021-2030, and Socioeconomic Development Plan 2021-2025 amid unprecedented mounting hardships.

Leveraging consistent, thorough, and drastic leadership of the Party and the state, strong engagement of the whole political system, the great solidarity and constant efforts from the business community and people from all walks of life, as well as efficient support from the international community, Vietnam has gradually weathered the storm with effective implementation of the targets of pandemic prevention and containment, and socioeconomic rebound and development.

Side by side with the whole nation, the industry and trade sector has been proactive in tackling all assigned tasks, taking wide-ranging measures to support enterprises in production and business, ensuring the smooth circulation of goods and provision of essential commodities, while facilitating import-export business. These efforts brought in due rewards in 2021.

Industrial production continued unfolding at around 5 per cent, higher than it was one year ago; in which the processing and manufacturing sector expanded 6.37 per cent, acting as the driving force for sector growth with an active contribution to national economic development, job creation, and ensuring social wellbeing.

Sturdy growth

Imports and exports set a record of $668.5 billion, soaring nearly 23 per cent on-year, becoming a bright spot of the economy and putting Vietnam on the list of 20 leading economies in international trade; in which exports exhibited spectacular growth of more than 19 per cent, up 15 per cent over projection, enabling Vietnam to retain a trade surplus of more than $4 billion for the sixth year in a row.

The supply-demand of goods was in harmony, and supply chains domestically and internationally were maintained, ensuring the timely and full supply of essential goods for people at a stable price. Significantly, e-commerce platforms were effectively availed of, helping to consume several tens of millions of tonnes of fresh agricultural produce for farmers at reasonable prices, even during social distancing last year.

E-commerce eyed robust growth, becoming a new driving force with a significant role in preventing disruption of the supply chain and facilitating export. Due regard was paid to ensuring state management in competition, consumers’ right protection, market management efficiency and the implementation of trade remedies to support healthy market growth, as well as protecting national interests along Vietnam’s international integration process.

Aside with achievements, some limitations still persist, demanding to be radically tackled with an innovative and progress-oriented mindset to be able to usher in strong and radical changes in the upcoming period.

This year is of great significance, laying the foundation for the successful accomplishment of the targets set in the development plan for the 2021-2025 period. Local and international standing is expected to face unfavourable factors. Particularly, COVID-19 might still show unforeseen complexities, while trade protectionism and trade spats between major economies have become increasingly stiff.

The global economic rebound has not yet been sound, and unequal among countries, with growing inflation pressure along with uncertainties in the international financial and monetary markets. Vietnam, however, has enjoyed favourable factors for investment attraction and socioeconomic development, along with a rebound of production and supply chains in a more sustainable manner.

Socioeconomic rebound

To ensure successful accomplishment of 2022 tasks and targets assigned by the government, all units in the industrial and trade sector need to seriously and consistently implement assigned tasks, simultaneously effectively carrying out the following measures.

Firstly, it is necessary to ensure strict obedience and effective implementation of the Party and state policies and orientations, particularly the 13th National Party Congress resolution, and related policies and orientations on industrial and trade development; closely following the actual situation to be able to present timely remedies for effective completion of all assigned tasks and targets.

Secondly, it is needed to constantly improve the quality of consultation to competent agencies to timely institutionalise Party’s directions; further reviewing, amending and perfecting the legal documents and mechanisms that are hindering development, simultaneously developing and enacting policies and regulations that are feasible for submission to competent agencies for pilot implementation with innovative spirit, paving the way to unleash development resources, particularly those outside the state budget into the sector’s development.

Third is being proactive in developing and enacting action plans, ensuring synchronous and effective implementation of tasks set in COVID-19 prevention and control overall programme, socioeconomic rebound and development programme, and other government resolutions, together with the country successfully implementing set tasks and targets.

Next is accelerating the implementation of solutions and tasks to restructure the industry and trade sector leveraging science and technology platforms, innovation, and digital transformation; and reviewing advantages and limitations along international economic integration, particularly policies in foreign investment attraction in industry and trade – from there presenting suitable policies and orientations to foster links between local and foreign firms.

It is also important to craft policies and mechanisms to beef up the development of big corporations and groups both in state and private sectors, encouraging firms to invest abroad, particularly in countries with advanced science and technology.

Overcoming challenges to best avail of the advantages of free trade agreements with Vietnam’s engagement can help expand and diversify markets and products to facilitate export in a sustainable manner, while effectively tapping into the domestic market to increase the habit of using Vietnamese products.

Last but not least is enhancing discipline, raising management efficiency attached to highlighting the responsibility of the leaders in implementing tasks and duties; accelerating administrative reforms, procedure simplification to facilitate investment, production and business activities; and promoting the cooperative spirit attached to pushing up IT progress application to bring strong changes across the whole system.