Foreign invested sector - important growth driver of Vietnam: official

As of the end of April 2023, Vietnam attracted nearly 446 billion USD in foreign investment, 280 billion USD of which had been disbursed. (Photo: VNA)

With the increasing project number and investment value, foreign invested enterprises have become a dynamic sector and an important growth driver for the Vietnamese economy, said Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Do Thanh Trung.

With open policies and a favourable, stable, and increasingly improved business climate, Vietnam is one of the leading countries and has obtained many major achievements in foreign investment attraction, he told a workshop held by the Vietnam Investment Review in Hanoi on May 15.

Over the last 35 years, the foreign invested sector has always been considered an important part of the Vietnamese economy and given conditions by the Party and State to develop, cooperate, and compete healthily and fairly with other economic sectors, the deputy minister noted.

As of the end of April, Vietnam attracted nearly 446 billion USD in foreign investment, 280 billion USD of which had been disbursed, statistics show.

Despite impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam was still among the 20 biggest recipients of foreign investment in 2020 as reported by the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). This proves Vietnam’s successes in attracting external resources, Trung said.

The foreign invested sector has made substantially contributions to the country’s integration into the world, expansion of relations with other countries, and promotion of its position and role in the region and the world, he went on.

Vietnam is still assessed as an attractive investment destination, he said, citing a recent survey by the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) which revealed that 60% of Japanese firms plan to expand operations in Vietnam in the next one or two years. Meanwhile, European investors rank Vietnam fifth among the leading global investment places.

Some participants in the workshop in Hanoi on May 15 (Photo: Vietnam Investment Review)

Choi Joo-ho, General Director of Samsung Vietnam, said Samsung has invested in the country since 2008 and is now present in many localities like Thai Nguyen, Hanoi, and Bac Ninh.

As of 2022, the Korean group had poured 20 billion USD into Vietnam and created about 300,000 jobs. In particular, half of the Samsung mobile phones exported globally is produced in the country.

However, the UNCTAD report also pointed out that competition in foreign investment attraction among developing countries will become fierce, especially amid a forecast decline in foreign investment flows in 2023 and an increase in investment demand for post-pandemic recovery and development.

To attract more foreign direct investment (FDI), many foreign firms recommended Vietnam continue building a transparent, predictable, and optimal investment and business climate. Samsung Vietnam held that foreign investors should also boost social activities and contribute more to local economic growth.

Deputy Minister Trung said aside from measures for keeping macro-economic stability, improving infrastructure, and developing human resources, Vietnam will also carry out others, including promoting an ecosystem for science, technology, and innovation, devising a flexible management mechanism, developing a strong domestic sector able to cooperate with the foreign invested one, and focusing on high and new technologies, modern services, the manufacturing industry, information technology, and financial services.

The country will also bring into play its internal strength and competitive edges to enhance the ties between the domestic and foreign invested sectors so as to secure sustainable economic development, he added./.