The event themed “Vietnam – We Mean Business: Connect and Innovate”, was part of the World Economic Forum on ASEAN 2018 underway in the capital city over September 11-13, drawing more than 1,200 entrepreneurs and investors across the globe, together with representatives of foreign business associations, embassies, and international organizations.

In his speech, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc described the VBS 2018 as an excellent opportunity for foreign investors and Vietnamese enterprises to exchange experience in the hope of promoting connectivity and innovation to open up new opportunities for broader cooperation in the fourth industrial revolution.

Addressing the summit, WEF President Borger Brende applauded the tremendous achievements Vietnam has recorded over the past three decades, as shown by WEF reports on the Vietnamese Government's constant efforts to improve the situation. The challenge of the industrial revolution 4.0 is the biggest obstacle facing Vietnam for the time being, he said, adding that Vietnam is sparing no efforts to surmount such difficulties towards stronger development.

“The Vietnamese government pledges to accompany foreign enterprises in their operations in Vietnam. Only 21% of Vietnam’s small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have taken part in the global value chains, much lower than the 46% in other ASEAN state members.

The country hopes that more economic groups and FDI enterprises help Vietnamese enterprises to become involved in the global value chains and promote human resource training. It aspires to become a prosperous country in the future,” Phuc emphasized.

The government leader also highlighted Vietnam’s economic growth potential and improved investment environment, saying the country is gaining trust from investors.

 "Vietnam is a WTO member and has participated in 12 free trade agreements (FTAs) including 6 of ASEAN’s FTAs with China, India, Japan and the Republic of Korea (RoK). The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is being approved, and the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) are likely to be signed by the end of this year. These agreements will provide a wealth of opportunity for Vietnam to engage further in the global value chains and production network,” Phuc said.

Vietnam aims to move to a higher position in the global value chains and enhance the connectivity between Vietnamese and FDI businesses. The country has set up trade relations with over 200 countries and territories from across the world. It has also taken the lead in exporting many agricultural products like rice, pepper, coffee, cashew nut, basa fish, and shrimp, he noted.

PM Phuc voiced his belief that Vietnam’s agriculture potential would be fully tapped and could be a strong magnet for investment and cooperation. The country holds aspirations to become a prosperous nation, inferior to no other countries in the world, he noted.

Vietnam is becoming one of the world's factories and a mainstay for large transnational corporations to supply globally competitive products and services. The country's trade opening has now accounted for over 200% of GDP. The political and social environment in the country has always been assessed to be stable in the region and beyond, in tandem with controlled public debt and inflation, and steady macroeconomic factors behind the constant average high growth rate of 15% per year.

At the meeting, the Vietnamese government leader and the WEF President also directly responded to a number of questions regarding the building of an e-government, plans for  renewable energy development in Vietnam, opportunities for Vietnam-WEF cooperation, and WEF support for Vietnam's SMEs in industrial revolution 4.0.

Source: vov.vn