According to Dr. Nguyen DinhCung, an economist, member of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Group, former Director of Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), the internal force of the Vietnamese economy hasstrong development potential. It is important to know how to bring into play its strengths, mobilize all resources and quickly seize opportunities so that Vietnam can grow steadily and thrive in the 2021-2025 period.

Dr. Nguyen Dinh Cung, economist, member of the Prime Minister's Economic
Advisory Group, former Director of Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM)

How do you evaluate the socio-economic development indicators in the 2021-2025 period?

The results that Vietnam achieved in 2020 will be the basis forexpectations in 2021. Vietnam can achieve a higher growth rate than the set target if it continues to strongly reform and hasaplanto recover the economy. However, if the very fundamental reforms remain unchanged, achieving a 5-6% growth rate is also difficult.

We are expecting GDP per capita for the 2021-2025 period to reach US$4,700-5,000 per year, and by 2030 to reach US$7,500 per year. In order to become a high-income developed country, from 2030, Vietnam must bein the top of middle-income countries, with GDP per capita atUS$10,000-12,000 per year. Thus, it is possible to approach the threshold of US$15,000-18,000 in the following years.

Vietnam can completely meet this expectation because the internal resources of the Vietnamese economy still have strong development potential. It is important to know how to promote strengths, mobilize all resources and quickly take opportunities.

To achieve the set goals, the solution is to continue to improve institutions, facilitate the active participation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the digital transformation process. Build a constructivist state, a government of integrity, action, service; modern, professional, disciplined; open and transparent administrative background. Strengthen the capacity to forecast and respond to policies in market economic conditions and international integration. Continuing to substantially reduce administrative procedures, business conditions, list of products and goods subject to specialized inspection.

It is very important that the Government continues to issue Resolution No. 02/2021 / NQ-CP, maintaining the continuity of goals and solutions in Resolutions 19 and Resolution 02 laterto continue the reforms achieved over the years. In Resolution No. 02/2021 / NQ-CP, the Government requested to focus on implementing tasks and solutions for digital transformation according to Decision 749. This is very appropriate in the context of the pandemic whichhas increased pressure as well as created opportunities to promote digital transformation of both the Government and enterprises.

In your opinion, we need to improve the business environment, cut down on specialized inspection in any direction and what are the challenges?

From the process of improving the business environment in the 2014 – 2020 period, we have many experiences and lessons to help propose more effective policies and solutions, and the Government's orientation on institutional reform, improve the well-defined business environment.

The upcoming implementation of business environment improvement has a number of challenges, such as more difficult and more complex issues and reform areas, and the room for immediate reform. Meanwhile, we lack a pioneer, promote reform, lack resources and necessary support from donors, lack of quality research to support award proposals ofthe reform method.

Solutions to improve the business environment in 2021 - 2025 to do what has not been done, inherit, continue to develop and expand the scope of previous resolutions such as the Resolution 19/2018, Resolution 02/2019.

Accordingly, it is necessary to renew the thinking and the way of making the law, as well as the role of the law. Legal documents need to be flexible, meeting development requirements, not necessarily complete and comprehensive, not necessarily withdozens or hundreds of terms, but just enough to deal with one or several. The problem is hindering the process of social development.

In the future, it is necessary to continue to expand business freedom and strengthen safety in business investment. Remove all barriers in all forms of restrictions, detractors from free business discovered. Consider and revise the regime of inspection and examination of enterprises, especially the law observance inspection regime according to the plan; abolish the enterprise inspection regime.

Can you tell us the driving force for Vietnam's economic growth in the future?

In order for Vietnam's economy to have growth motivation, it is necessary to have mechanisms and finance to encourage enterprises to participate in research, development and technological innovation. Specifically, Vietnam needs a national innovation system, an innovative startup ecosystem, which is business-centered. To become a promised land, Vietnam needs to strengthen protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights, which is an especially important factor to protect creativity.

In particular, in the future, all barriers and prejudices must be removed, creating all favorable conditions for private economic development; support the private economy to innovate, modernize technology and develop human resources, and improve labor productivity. Encourage the formation and development of large private economic groups with strong potentials as well as regional and international competitiveness. Strive to have at least 2 million enterprises by 2030 with the contribution of the private economic sector to GDP reaching 60 - 65%