Vietnam to sustain decade-high economic growth to 2020: PM

Vietnam will maintain its current economic growth until 2020 by giving private firms more room to grow and driving positive change to rural areas, said Vietnam’s prime minister in an interview with the Financial Times and Nikkei last Monday.

Nguyen Xuan Phuc said the country’s economy is estimated grow by 7.41 percent in the first quarter of 2018 compared to 6.81 percent last year, marking the highest growth rate in a decade.

To continue this success, Phuc said Vietnam will facilitate an economic environment conducive for private firms to thrive, citing how these companies account for 43 percent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), making them the vanguards of Vietnam’s economic growth.

The Vietnamese government will help by developing new policies, distributing resources, encouraging the creation of new enterprises and giving firms more opportunities to utilize modern technologies, said Phuc.

"We will try to put in place the most favorable policies and create the most favorable environment so that by 2020, we will have in operation over one million businesses, accounting for 50 percent of Vietnam’s GDP, up from 43 percent at present," he said.

The country will also focus on solving traditional issues involving employment, national budget, government debt and the shift in economic structure, with extra focus on the development of rural areas. Phuc said that while these areas may contribute little to the nation’s GDP, they have high numbers of unutilized workers and huge prospects. The PM said that by focusing on these areas, Vietnam can ensure all-round comprehensive development.

Encouraging the creation of new innovative startups on these untapped areas is high on Vietnam’s agenda, Phuc said, hoping the initiative will engage young Vietnamese and turn these areas into development hubs.

Vietnam’s decade-high economic growth can be attributed to heightened export revenue and macroeconomic stability, said Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment  Le Quang Manh on Tuesday. Export revenue in the first quarter hit $33.62 million, up 23 percent against the same period last year, while purchasing power increased sharply thanks to macroeconomic stability, reflected in an increase of 2.82 percent in the consumer price index (CPI), said Manh.