Vietnam eyes $10,000 per capita income by 2035

The GDP in those years would then be $670 billion and $1.05 trillion, according to an economic policy framework for the period up to 2035 recently issued by the Ministry of Planning and Investment. This will make Vietnam an upper middle-income country. 

Vietnam has also targeted to reduce its poverty rate to 1 percent and increasing the middle-class rate to 50 percent by 2035.

The middle and affluent class now is categorized as those earning $714 a month or more, according to the Boston Consulting Group.

According to the document, encouraging the continued development of the private sector and developing human resources and innovations taking advantage of the Fourth Industrial Revolution would be two of the driving forces for economic growth.

The country hopes to have two million private businesses that contribute 50 percent of its GDP by 2020 and 60-65 percent by 2030.

The reforms to achieve these goals will focus on modernizing the economy and developing the private sector, building innovation capacity, improving economic efficiency of urbanization, and building modern institutions and efficient governance.

Vietnam also aims to ensure its development is environmentally sustainable and equitable, promote social inclusion and enhance its adaptability to climate change.

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung said strong reforms are needed to continue developing and not fall behind the times.

Speaking to Vietnam's development partners at a forum on reform and development Wednesday, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said: "We have the aspiration to become a prosperous economy, but we are fully aware that the road will be uneven with many challenges. Those are the challenges from both within the economy and the impacts caused by fluctuations in the global economy."

To address these issues he pledged his government would soon speed up administrative reform and establish an economic system that enables all economic entities to have the right to participate in making development plans and policies.

"Vietnam will focus on building its soft and digital infrastructure to convert the economy into a digital one, reform its recruitment mechanism and focus on training human resources to make use of the fourth industrial revolution as a driving force for growth."

According to World Bank Group statistics, Vietnam's GDP per capita in 2017 is $2,343. The figure for Singapore is $57,714, Malaysia ($9,945), Thailand ($6,594), the Philippines ($2,989) and Myanmar ($1,298).

Minister Dung estimated that Vietnam’s GDP would grow by 6.57 percent on average in the 2016-2018 period, meeting the National’s Assembly target of 6.5-6.7 percent growth.

In the first nine months this year, Vietnam’s GDP grew by 6.98 percent, the highest nine-month growth rate since 2011. The economy grew by 6.81 percent last year, the highest rate in a decade.