Day: October 12, 2021

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc met with over 40 representatives of the Vietnam Young Entrepreneurs’ Association (VYEA) in Ho Chi Minh City on October 12, offering congratulations on the Vietnam Entrepreneurs’ Day (October 13).

Established 26 years ago, the VYEA currently gathers more than 10,000 members nationwide.

VYEA Chairman Dang Hong Anh said facing the COVID-19 pandemic, businesspeople have always joined hands with the Party, State, and people to overcome difficulties.

They hope that the Party and State will continue issuing mechanisms, policies and support packages for businesses to overcome this trying time, he added.

Expressing his sympathy for businesses and entrepreneurs on their losses in the pandemic, President Phuc applauded their efforts to address difficulties, sustain production, retain employees, and contribute to social security in response to the Party and State’s appeal.

He asked young entrepreneurs to uphold patriotism and national pride, noting that they should bring into play solidarity to maintain mutual support while strengthening their will and mettle to succeed in every circumstance and compete with their peers around the world.

As creativity is the strength of the youth, challenges should be viewed as the catalyst for creativity and entrepreneurship so as to develop businesses and the country. Young entrepreneurs need to have trust in their career, the people’s fortune, and the country’s future, and they should be confident and patient in their actions, according to the State leader.

The President said he will join other Party and State leaders in working to tackle hindrances facing businesses to help them address difficulties and grow more strongly.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Despite impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Vietnam still rose 4.4 percent year on year in the first nine months of 2021 to 22.15 billion USD.

An upturn was recorded in both value of investment to new projects as well as additional capital to existing ones. Specifically, 12.5 billion USD was poured into 2,212 newly-licensed projects, up 20.6 percent over the same period last year, while 6.4 billion USD was added into underway projects, a rise of 25.6 percent.

Particularly, Vietnam saw many large-scale FDI projects in the January-September period.

According to Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, the result manifested the attractiveness of the Vietnamese market and foreign investors’ confidence in Vietnam’s capacity in controlling the pandemic and its economic recovery as well as the effectiveness of measures taken by the Government to accompany and support businesses.

The fourth wave of COVID-19 infections in Vietnam since late April that caused prolonged social distancing in many provinces and cities nationwide has greatly affected production and business activities in the country.

However, many foreign investors have remained optimistic about the business and investment environment in Vietnam, and affirmed that Vietnam will still be a top choice for their new and expanded projects.

Binu Jacob, CEO of Nestle Vietnam, pledged that the company will continue to expand its investment in Vietnam and make more contributions to the country’s sustainable growth and socio-economic development.

Meanwhile, Choi Joo Ho, General Director of Samsung Vietnam, said that Vietnam is providing an attractive investment environment for foreign investors thanks to its numerous advantages.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The southern province of Binh Duong is striving to have 90 percent of its enterprises resume operations by the end of this month, and 100 percent by the end of this year.

So far, as many as 4,216 firms have applied for “three on site”, “One route, two destinations”, and “three green” working models with 444,496 workers.

Of them, 2,289 enterprises are in industrial parks (IPs) with 314,354 workers, 69 in industrial clusters with 9,109 workers, and 1,858 outside IPs with 121,033 labourers.

The management board of provincial IPs are stepping up vaccinations for experts and workers. They also established mobile medical stations in IPs to ensure workers’ access to medical services as well as safety in production.

Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Nguyen Van Loi also committed all possible support to firms to return to work in safe conditions.

The province has basically contained the COVID-19 pandemic, thus enabling production and business activities to gradually resume. However, many firms are facing such difficulties as a shortage of workers because migrant workers had returned to their home towns during the lockdown period. Rising costs of materials pose another problem.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Foreign direct investment (FDI) flows into Vietnam are shifting to hi-tech sectors, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ha Van Hoi from the UEB-VNU has said.

The FDI from large corporations who own advanced technologies is setting the scene for transfer of technology, know-how and expertise to Vietnamese enterprises to improve their competitive edge and build capacity for local economic sectors, he told an international conference on “Global FDI and Responses of FDI Enterprises in Vietnam in the New Context” held last week.

Echoing Hoi’s view, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Minh Nhan from the University of Commerce said studies show that there is a shift in FDI from the textile and garment industry to hi-tech industries, for example, computer and electronics manufacturing.

Hoi made several recommendations to help Vietnam lure more new-generation FDI, saying it is necessary to produce outstanding and competitive incentives to attract high-tech, eco-friendly projects, particularly those building RandD and innovative centres in Vietnam; and to strengthen linkages between foreign and domestic investors and facilitate technology transfer.

The country should also accelerate investment promotion to catch the eye of financially capable and experienced multinationals; keep a close watch on the movement of FDI and technologies into Vietnam to select proper investment projects; and enhance human resources quality, he added.

According to Assoc. Prof, Dr Nguyen Truc Le, Rector of the Vietnam National University (VNU)’s University of Economics and Business (UEB), Vietnam was named among the world’s Top 20 FDI recipients for the first time last year.

The “new normal” may pose various challenges to Vietnam but it also provides the country with many chances, he said, adding that these opportunities have been driven by the government’s highly-regarded effort to keep the COVID-19 at bay and boost economic growth at the same time for months. Vietnam is also taking advantage of new-generation free trade agreements to draw more FDI, he continued.

The launch of new incentives to selectively attract FDI and improve business climate also play a role in enhancing the quality of the FDI, he cited.

Expectation from the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) is driving the FDI from the EU into Vietnam, said Prof. Dr. Andreas Stoffers, Country Director of Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom in Vietnam.

Vietnam is the most attractive destination among ASEAN member states, Stoffers said. Having one of the most liberal economic systems in the region, Vietnam offers appealing conditions for foreign investors to actively do business in the country, he noted, adding that it was not without reason that Vietnam was chosen by the EU to sign a trade pact with.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Vietnam is committed to, together with other countries, promoting international peace and security and addressing regional issues, Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, has said.

Quy made the statement during the general debate of the First Committee of the UN General Assembly’s 76th Session on October 11. The First Committee deals with disarmament and international security matters.

He said Vietnam consistently pursues a policy of non-proliferation and disarmament of weapons of mass destruction to prevent the spread of and putting an end to these weapons. The country is enforcing relevant treaties in line with international law in a balanced and non-discriminatory manner, he emphasised, adding that it is important to respect other countries’ legitimate rights in defence and security.

Post-war unexploded ordnances remain a threat to civilians, peacekeeping operations and socio-economic development in more than 60 countries, including Vietnam, he noted.

As the rotating President of the UN Security Council in April 2021, Vietnam pushed for the adoption of the Presidential Statement S/PRST/2021/08 on mine action, which calls on all UN member states and related agencies to continue providing support for affected countries.

The Vietnamese diplomat also said that information and communications technology (ICT) greatly benefits socio-economic growth but all states must cooperate to develop a set of standards for responsible behaviours to tackle common challenges in accordance with international law.

The First Committee’s meeting will convene until early November, during which multiple resolutions regarding disarmament and international security are expected to be adopted.

Source: Vietnam News Agency