Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and President of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Borge Brende had a dialogue themed “Vietnam and the World” on January 24, in the framework of the ongoing WEF Annual Meeting 2019 in Davos, Switzerland.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) and WEF President Borge Brende at the “Vietnam and the World” dialogue in Davos on January 24

This is the first time the WEF has held a particular session on Vietnam.

Opening the dialogue, Brende highlighted the success of the WEF on ASEAN hosted by Vietnam in 2018, which delivered important and meaningful messages to the region and the world. 

That success not only reflected the importance of ASEAN but also helped improve Vietnam’s stature considerably, he noted.

He also emphasised PM Phuc and the Vietnamese Government’s strong commitments and resolve to promote production so as to get further involved in global supply chains.

For his part, PM Phuc said in 2018, although the world witnessed numerous complex and unpredictable changes, Vietnam’s GDP growth rate still approximated 7.1 percent, making it one of the countries with the fastest growth in the world, while the growth quality was also improved substantially. 

Expressing his optimism about economic development in 2019, he affirmed that Vietnam will make efforts to continue developing in a strong, sustainable and inclusive manner and ensure that no one is left behind. To do that, it will make use of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, push ahead with reforming the investment and business climate, bolster investment cooperation between the domestic and foreign sectors, and pay more attention to human resources training.

With the policy of integrating intensively into the global economy, Vietnam supports free and multilateral trade, he affirmed.

Noting the pillars basing on which Vietnam will promote fast, sustainable and inclusive development, PM Phuc said the country will work to better ensure macro-economic stability since this is an important factor to win investors’ trust. It will also improve the economy’s resilience and capitalise on tourism, agricultural and information technology advantages. Additionally, it will step up institutional reforms, perfect the socialist-oriented market economy institutions in line with international practices and commitments which Vietnam participates in, and enhance the integration into the region and the world.

Regarding the fourth Industrial Revolution or Industry 4.0, the leader said Vietnam will take proactive actions to improve its labour productivity, adding that making use of Industry 4.0 is the best way for the country to develop fast and sustainably.

He said despite many difficulties, Vietnam has certain advantages when taking part in Industry 4.0, including a young, dynamic and creative population and people’s aspiration to move forwards.

The Vietnamese Government is building a national strategy on Industry 4.0 and preparing to set up a national innovation centre, he said, noting that Vietnam is the first Southeast Asian nation to cooperate with the WEF to establish a centre on Industry 4.0.

In terms of sustainable development requirements, the PM stressed that his country wants to simultaneously develop the economy, society and environment, and it will never exchange the environment for growth.

In response to WEF President Brende’s question about how Vietnam will surprise the world in the next five years, PM Phuc said the country will keep alive its spirit and aspiration for development. Firstly, it will sustain the growth trend, improve people’s living standards and continue to be a reliable destination for foreign investors. The country will also make stronger reforms in law and policy making.

Vietnam considers investors’ success as its own, the PM said, pledging to protect investors’ rights and legitimate interests so that they can further contribute to the country’s socio-economic development.

Also on January 24, PM Phuc had a working session with executives of several major IT groups. He vowed non-stop efforts to improve the business climate, along with close coordination with the business community to remove barriers to innovation.-VNA