Vietnam aims at high-income status by 2045

The country’s Gross National Income (GNI) per capita this year is almost $2,800, which would be over $3,000 using a revised GDP measurement method, Phuc said at an online meeting with leaders of cities and provinces on Monday.

This puts Vietnam in the lower-middle income economy classification, defined as economies with a GNI per capita between $1,026 and $3,995, according to the World Bank. Some other countries in this group are Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Myanmar and the Philippines.

Vietnam could soon climb onto the upper-middle income classification (GNI per capita $3,996-$12,375), Phuc said. This group includes China, Malaysia, Mexico, South Africa and Thailand.

But in order to reach the high-income status by 2045, Vietnam will need to maintain its current growth speed for the next two decades, Phuc said, adding that slower growth would push the goal back by a few years.

The high-income group, with GNI per capita of $12,376 or more, includes Australia, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and the U.S.

Vietnam’s GDP growth of 7.02 percent in 2019 exceeded the parliament’s target of 6.6-6.8 percent as well as forecasts by several international organizations like the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.

It had slowed from a record 7.08 percent in 2018, but remained the second highest growth figure in the last decade.