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Vietnamese Businesses in the Fifth Year of WTO Membership (28/3)
28/03/2012 - 7 Lượt xem
After five years of WTO membership
The Ministry of Planning and Investment said that Vietnamese businesses had increased 2.3 times in number and 7.3 times in the amount of registered
capital since 2007. Many businesses have focused on making long-term
business and production plans, investing in market research, improving
capital efficiency, and actively applying science and technology in
production.
Associate Professor Dr. Vu Van Phuc, Editor-in-Chief of the Communist Journal, said that Vietnamese business competitiveness had increased in the fifth year of WTO membership.
Many Vietnamese businesses have step by step established a niche in the regional and global markets. Export earnings increased by an average of 19.25
percent annually from 2007-2011 compared with 18.1 percent from
2001-2005 (prior to Vietnamese WTO membership). Per capita export
revenue was US$914.4 compared with US$559.2 in 2006.
Vietnamese commodities have spread to hard-to-please markets, while the quality of exports has improved. Companies have sold abroad a full range of new exports such as fruits, vegetables and flowers. The scale of export markets has increased, 19 of which had turned over US$1 billion or more in 2010.
New services have been launched attracting many kinds of business, particularly in the non-state sector. A large number of businesses have invested to develop several high tech industries.
Together with domestic businesses, the foreign direct investment (FDI) sector has also grown rapidly. In the last five years, total foreign invested capital reached US$45 billion, a 77.8 percent increase from what was projected for the period.
Total new and supplementary FDI capital topped US$146 billion, seven
times more than in 2001-2005, and many large FDI projects had shifted
from industry to other sectors with competitive advantages such as tourism, services, hotels, restaurants, real estate, finance and banking.
However, experts said that after five years of WTO membership Vietnamese business competitiveness remains weak and unstable as a result of the small scale of the market, low science and technology, the small number of major brand names, the low quality of human resources, the great reliance on export processing and imported materials, and unsound business competitiveness strategies, which have together made it still impossible for Vietnamese businesses to enhance their reputation and to increase product quality and their share in the regional and global markets.
Sharpening business competitiveness
The Financial Strategy and Policy Institute under the Ministry of Finance said that to increase the competitiveness of Vietnamese businesses to keep up with the need of international
economic integration it is vital to increase productivity and to
maintain sustainable productivity growth in order to improve business
efficiency and increase profitability. However, for this to happen, the State, businesses and sectors need to take complete measures to improve their
labor force, and create and effectively use capital, to renew
technology and equipment, to invest in research, to develop cooperation
and to link governmental policies to improve the business environment.
As for the State,
it needs to continue improving laws, institutions and fiscal policies,
adjust exchange rates and related fields to develop various forms of market, to facilitate the business environment, to help businesses make the most of new opportunities and reduce risks and adverse affects. Meanwhile, incentives need to be put in place to sharpen the competitive edge of domestic businesses and sectors.
As for businesses, they need to take the initiative
in diversifying capital sources to ensure sufficient investment
capital, to actively work with universities and research facilities to
improve human resources to meet the need for high-tech labor force. They also need to update their knowledge on international integration, be aware of the positive and negative impacts of international economic integration, take every investment opportunity, apply advanced technology and expand their export markets without neglecting the domestic market.
The Development Strategy Institute under the Ministry of Planning and Investment also said that to improve competitiveness Vietnamese businesses should focus on six measures. First is
to build a strong business team. Second is to set up global businesses
that will drive economic development, international economic
integration and international competition. Third is to establish
businesses by developing multi-sector industrial zones in the areas of electronics,
mechanics, cement, new materials, ocean shipping and logistics, rice,
tourism and more. Fourth is to develop infrastructure and lower input
costs in order to increase business efficiency and international
competitiveness. Fifth is to develop high-quality workforce to meet the need
for rapid and sustainable business and economic development. Finally,
it is needed to build national management capacity, regarding the legal system and policies to facilitate businesses in period of globalization and international economic integration./.
Source: VEN
Source: VEN
