Nation needs more support industries

Delegates at a conference in HCM City last Saturday said Viet Nam needed a major focus change to improve economic growth.

If the government adapted to meet changing global challenges, Viet Nam would become a modern-oriented industrialised country by 2020, said Tran Dinh Thien, director of the Viet Nam Institute of Economics.

Obstacles included the transportation sector, energy supply and urban infrastructure, he said, adding long term strategies were needed, as short term fixes were not sustainable.

Dr Nguyen Ngoc Vinh from HCM City University of Economics said despite being one of the fastest growing economies in the region, the growth was hobbled by poor management of human and natural resources, low national competitiveness and an increasing Incremental Capital Output Ratio (ICOR).

ICOR assessed the marginal amount of investment capital necessary for an entity to generate the next unit of production. Higher ICOR value indicated inefficient production, he said.

The need for more supporting industries had cost the country millions of US dollars to import material for production, a major contributor to the trade deficit, he said.

Delegates agreed government agencies needed to focus on economic management capacity and the education and training sector.

Other issues discussed were better management of natural resources, development of the country’s supporting industries and better control of public spending.

Delegates said it was important the country focus more on developing national strong points such as agricultural processing, seafood, garment and textile and footwear to increase their competitiveness in the global market.

Thien said the country’s growth model in the long-run had to be towards high technology. — VNS

Tags: Vietnam support industries