In late September 2021, Thaco officially became the new owner of Emart Vietnam after reaching an agreement with South Korea’s Emart on the transfer of 100% capital and an exclusive franchise in Vietnam.

Thaco plans to expand the Emart hypermarket system not only in big cities but also in other localities in Vietnam, specifically with two more stores in Ho Chi Minh City in 2022, and 10 stores by 2025.

Recently, the BIM wind power plant in Quan The, the central province of Ninh Thuan, has officially entered commercial operation, making this area one of the largest green economic complexes in Vietnam.

With a total investment of US$155 million, BIM wind power plant with a capacity of 88MW will supply electricity to 50,000 households. This is a project invested and developed by BIM Wind Power Joint Stock Company - a joint venture between BIM Group and AC Energy, a member of Ayala Group (Philippines).

In the context that the economy and Vietnamese businesses have been seriously affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, the outstanding economic activities of these private corporations are considered a symbol of the resistance of Vietnamese enterprises.

Since the epidemic broke out in early 2020, private businesses have actively joined the Government and people to fight the epidemic.

Social responsibility

According to unofficial statistics of the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), many private businesses have importantly contributed to the country’s fight against the COVID-19 epidemic.

For example, Sun Group has joined hands with the Government to welcome flights bringing Vietnamese people from epidemic-hit countries to Vietnam at its Van Don International Airport. This corporation funded the construction of the Tien Son field hospital in Da Nang in August 2020, the VND50 billion Intensive Care Center (ICU) for treatment of Covid-19 patients in Bac Giang, an ICU in Bac Ninh, etc.

This corporation donated modern medical equipment and machinery for testing and treating Covid-19 patients to many provinces and cities such as Ha Tinh, Hung Yen, Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Kien Giang, Ba Ria Vung Tau, Tay Ninh...

When the Government established the Vaccine Fund and called for the support of the entire people, Sun Group donated VND320 billion to the fund. It also donated VND65 billion to the vaccine fund of Thanh Hoa and Hanoi.

Another large private group - Vingroup - donated ventilators, medical equipment, testing machines and chemicals, and funded projects to quickly respond to the Covid-19 epidemic… worth over VND 1,277 billion in 2020. Recently, Vingroup donated 30 COVID-19 testing machines and 2 million test samples, totaling more than VND460 billion and cash equivalent to 4 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines for the National Vaccine Fund. So far, Vingroup has donated cash and materials worth nearly VND2,300 billion to the fight against Covid-19 in Vietnam.

Other private corporations that have also made great contributions to the country’s fight against Covid-19 are Thaco with 63 specialized vehicles to transport COVID-19 vaccines and 63 vehicles for mobile vaccination with a total value of more than VND150 billion and Van Thinh Phat Group with the construction of 2 field hospitals in District 7 and Binh Chanh District, HCM City, with a total of 7,000 bedds.

Geleximco and ABBANK contributed VND20 billion to the Government's Vaccine Fund in June 2021; donated 500 high-flow oxygen ventilators with a total value of VND 25 billion; Sovico Group and HDBank donated VND60 billion (equivalent to 1 million doses of vaccine), Hung Thinh (420,000 doses of vaccine), T&T, Hoa Phat, Ecopark, etc. donated hundreds of billions of VND; Vietjet Air transported thousands of medical, military, police officers and hundreds of tons of medical equipment to fight the epidemic.

Joining hands with the Government in the prevention and control of the Covid-19 epidemic, private businesses have demonstrated corporate social responsibility.

Running out of resources

According to a quick survey by the General Statistics Office, 94.3% of businesses are severely affected by the epidemic. In 19 southern provinces, 98.9% of enterprises said they were facing severe difficulties.

Overall, the industrial sector is still a bright spot, making the most positive contribution to the economy, but the growth rate of this sector in January-September 2021 was very low, reaching only 40% of the average growth rate of the past five years. For Ho Chi Minh City, the largest economic center in the country, the industrial production index in this period was -13% and -47.1% in the third quarter of 2021.

According to the General Statistics Office, many businesses are currently facing a serious shortage of workers. Businesses have to pay high cost for epidemic prevention while the price of input materials has increased.

In such a difficult situation, experts of the General Statistics Office said that it is likely that many southern localities will not complete the economic development target in 2021.

Unleashing the power

Dr. Nguyen Dinh Cung, former director of the Central Institute for Economic Management, said that in the coming time, in order to support businesses, cooperatives and business households to overcome the pandemic and recover, the Government needs to provide financial support and credit access needs to be more focused, condensed and practical for businesses.

In addition, it is necessary to waive or reduce all the current fees for businesses regardless of the level and results of their business, for example, free road toll for 2 years, free trade union fee for 3 years.

He suggested a special credit support program for businesses in a number of industries that have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic for a long time, such as tourism and aviation. M

In addition, it is necessary to continue to reform and improve the business environment through amending and perfecting institutions, expanding freedom of business, removing barriers and eliminating administrative procedures to maximize opportunities for business.

Lan Anh

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