Removing policy shortcomings, "unleashing" private enterprises

How to "untie" private enterprises to focus on production and business, contributing more effectively to the country's economic growth is the content shared by many experts and enterprises at the Workshop on removing policies to promote the role of the private economy in the Vietnamese economy organized by the Ho Chi Minh City Business Association in coordination with Nhan Dan Newspaper and Vietnam Television on the afternoon of March 21.

Mr. Le Quoc Minh, Editor-in-Chief of Nhan Dan Newspaper, informed that up to now, Vietnam's private economic sector includes about 940,000 enterprises and more than 5 million individual business households, contributing about more than 50% of GDP, more than 30% of the state budget, creating jobs for more than 80% of the total workforce in the country.

Some enterprises have expanded to the big sea, affirming their brand and competitiveness in the international market, contributing to enhancing the position and prestige of Vietnam. However, the private economy is still facing many difficulties and major obstacles from barriers in accessing resources, especially land, credit capital, etc. - the reason why private enterprises cannot grow or do not want to grow.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Thai Thanh Quy, Deputy Head of the Central Strategic Policy Committee, raised the issue that after 40 years of renovation, the Party's viewpoints and policies on the private economy have been clearly and correctly identified, accordingly, the private economy has been identified as an important driving force of the economy and is encouraged to develop in all sectors and fields that are not prohibited by law. The private economic sector has become the most populous sector, making the greatest contribution to the Vietnamese economy.

Many large private enterprises such as Vingroup, Masan, Sun Group, Vietjet, Thaco, TH... have reached regional and global levels, becoming brands that bring pride to the Vietnamese people; along with that is a force of more than 5 million individual business households spread across all localities in the country.

However, the private economic sector is also facing many challenges, especially barriers, regulations, and administrative procedures from state agencies that cause difficulties, costs, and reduce the competitiveness of enterprises. On the other hand, we must also look back at the business thinking of many private enterprises that is still limited, not focusing on innovation, improving product quality, and there is still a situation where enterprises "do not want to grow, do not want to grow," especially the force of more than 5 million individual business households due to constraints and concerns about regulations and procedures...

In order to truly resolve and remove bottlenecks and promote the potential and strength of the private economic sector in the coming time, Mr. Thai Thanh Quy emphasized the need to create a spirit of innovation, new momentum and excitement in the whole society about the rise of the economy, considering this a historic opportunity that cannot be delayed any longer.

Conference scene. (Photo: Xuan Anh/VNA)

According to Mr. Thai Thanh Quy, it is necessary to carry out a revolution in improving the investment and business environment quickly, creating favorable conditions and the most open environment for all economic sectors; including the private economy to develop, removing barriers to entry and exit from the market; creating favorable and equal access conditions for the private economy with other economic sectors in terms of resources, especially capital, resources and data resources...

At the same time, build a clear development strategy for groups of entities in the private economic sector, from large to medium and small enterprises, as well as individual business households. On the part of the business community, entrepreneurs must further promote dynamism, creativity and initiative in abandoning informal thinking to implement modern corporate governance.

From a business perspective, Ms. La Thi Lan, General Director of Tien Loc Investment Group, shared that in the context of the Vietnamese economy facing great opportunities and challenges, private enterprises have clearly defined their roles and responsibilities and proactively taken strategic steps to improve their competitiveness. First of all, restructuring enterprises and digital transformation are urgent requirements. Digitizing operational processes, applying modern technology and rapidly transforming to green not only helps improve labor productivity but is also a vital factor to affirm its position in the domestic and foreign markets.

Investing in infrastructure and high technology is an important strategy to help businesses create products that meet international standards, meet market demand and enhance their competitive position on a global scale. Applying advanced technology not only helps increase productivity but also contributes to building a strong business ecosystem.

Enterprises also identify value chain linkage and international integration as the inevitable path. Currently, most private enterprises are still developing fragmentedly, lacking close linkages. It is necessary to promote extensive cooperation between domestic enterprises, take advantage of free trade agreements (FTAs), thereby expanding the market, participating more deeply in regional and global value chains.

"Enterprises hope that the State and Government will continue to have stronger support policies to remove legal barriers, facilitate access to capital and land, and build a transparent business environment. At the same time, there needs to be a mechanism to encourage research and development (R&D), support businesses to invest in science and technology, and innovation to improve productivity and product quality. The Government needs to have policies to support supporting industry enterprises. When attracting foreign direct investment (FDI), it is necessary to set binding conditions for FDI enterprises on linking with domestic enterprises, transferring technology, and helping domestic enterprises participate more deeply in regional and global supply chains. This will not only help improve domestic production capacity but also ensure sustainable and in-depth economic development," Ms. La Thi Lan suggested.

Ms. La Thi Lan, General Director of Tien Loc Investment Group, made recommendations at the workshop. (Photo: Xuan Anh/VNA)

Meanwhile, Mr. Trinh Tien Dung, General Director of Dai Dung Construction and Trading Mechanical Joint Stock Company, said that to promote growth and sustainable development, it is necessary to focus on three main pillars of the economy, including promoting public investment, selectively attracting FDI, and improving policies to create favorable conditions for the development of the private economy.

To realize these goals, it is necessary to synchronously implement a number of specific solutions, such as boldly reforming administrative procedures and shortening the licensing time for investment projects. At the same time, it is necessary to have appropriate development strategies for each group of enterprises - from large, medium and small enterprises to individual business households.

In particular, small and medium enterprises and business households need to be encouraged and supported to promote their internal strength and grow stronger in the current context. At the same time, promote the role of economic diplomacy in supporting Vietnamese enterprises to expand their markets and seek international cooperation and investment opportunities.

"Close coordination between the State and the business community is a prerequisite for sustainable economic development. Among them, the leading role of large enterprises needs to be promoted, while the business environment must also be truly favorable, transparent and stable for all economic sectors to develop together," Mr. Trinh Tien Dung emphasized.

Source: VNP