Speaking to Lao Dong Newspaper, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Thuong Lang - Senior Lecturer at the National Economics University - said that although there is still more than 1 year left until the end of the 2021-2025 period, from an optimistic point of view, the 5-year Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021-2025 is completely achievable, even exceeding the main targets. The general achievement is that the country has overcome the pandemic with a strong momentum. Resilience is confidently affirmed, and has accumulated significant internal strength from the ability to respond proactively, positively and effectively to the pandemic as well as to the uncertain changes of the world economy.
To bring the country forward in the new era, breakthrough solutions need to be applied, taking socio-economic stability as the foundation, promoting new growth drivers such as digital transformation, green transformation, circular economy, etc. Policies need to be adjusted in the direction of thoroughly promoting these new growth drivers in conjunction with promoting renewed traditional drivers.
In that context, with the determination and efforts of the entire political system, Vietnam is still a bright spot in the global economy.Economic growth in 2021 reached 2.56%, while many economies in the world experienced negative growth; economic growth in 2022 reached 8.02%, much higher than the plan of 6 - 6.5%, a high level compared to other countries in the region and the world.
Entering 2023, the GDP growth for the whole year reached 5.05%, a great effort in the context of a very difficult global situation, helping our country's economy remain in the group of high-growth countries in the region and the world. In particular, the agricultural sector is a bright spot and continues to be a solid pillar of the economy in difficult times; the service sector develops quite dynamically, the industrial and construction sectors gradually recover. The value of Vietnam's national brand reached 431 billion USD, up 1 rank to 32/100 strong national brands in the world.
In 2024, the GDP growth rate in the following quarter will be higher than the previous quarter, and the whole year is estimated to reach about 7%, exceeding the target set by the National Assembly (6-6.5%). Vietnam is among the few countries with high growth in the region and the world and is highly appreciated by international organizations.
These miracles do not come naturally. Along with the efforts of the business community and each citizen, there is the breakthrough thinking, urgent and flexible actions, putting the effectiveness of leadership above all else of the entire political system, with many policies and solutions issued and implemented by the Government at the right time, helping our country's economy recover quickly and strongly.
These include support packages of the Socio-Economic Recovery and Development Program, stimulus packages to support growth recovery to enhance the capacity and competitiveness of the economy; policies to cut input costs for businesses, creating an equal and open business environment. The State Bank of Vietnam and the Ministry of Finance have closely coordinated to harmonize fiscal and monetary policies. Proactively and flexibly regulate the money market, interest rates and exchange rates in the context of central banks of major economies raising interest rates to control inflation. This helps ensure liquidity, effectively supporting businesses to stabilize production.
The country is entering 2025, a year of special significance, identified as a year of acceleration and breakthrough to achieve a national GDP growth rate of over 8%. This is also the final year of implementing the 5-year Socio-Economic Development Plan 2021-2025 and preparing and consolidating fundamental factors, promoting new growth drivers, so that the country can confidently enter a new era - the era of national growth.
New spring, with new spirit, high determination and aspirations for a developed and prosperous Vietnam. People put their trust in the leadership of the Party, in the "drumbeat" that General Secretary To Lam has beaten on preventing and combating waste, streamlining the apparatus, removing institutional bottlenecks to unblock resources for development, creating new opportunities for the country.
And in the new development stage of the country, the Vietnamese business community and enterprises play an important role, representing new productive forces in the economy. Currently, Vietnam has nearly 900,000 enterprises and aims to increase to more than 1 million enterprises by 2025. Vietnamese enterprises are growing stronger and stronger in terms of scale, quantity and quality. These are positive signals from the "pillars of the national economy".
Looking back at the “6,000-day miracle of Japan”, the “dragonization” of Singapore, or the economic boom of South Korea, they all relied on industrial and technological development, bringing the country to world level. This is what Vingroup, Viettel, Thaco, FPT… and many other businesses have been doing, with business philosophies towards the future, starting from serving the country and people of Vietnam to reach the world level.
In addition to the leadership of the “leading cranes”, there is a great need for a “strong transformation” of small and medium-sized enterprises, even micro-enterprises – which account for over 98% of the total number of enterprises in the country. This is an important force contributing to socio-economic stability, job creation and serving the domestic market of 100 million people.
In the context of digital transformation, green transformation, and energy transformation, it is an inevitable trend; the world is gradually shifting from a traditional resource-consuming economic model to a green economy, a circular economy, and a responsible community. The Vietnamese business community is no exception to this trend. With their creativity, businesses need to take advantage of this opportunity to rise up and play an active role in the global transformation.
And to "support" businesses, to promote the internal strength of the nation and the business community, it is necessary to have an "integrated business environment". That is transparency, openness, creating maximum openness and convenience for businesses, to promote the "identity" of Vietnamese businessmen, who always have the courage, intelligence, and aspiration to rise up and enrich themselves and the country.
(Posted on the special edition of Lao Dong Xuan At Ty)
