According to Director of the Vietnam Chamber for Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Vu Tien Loc, poor access to the government’s plans and local administrations’ regulations failed businesses’ efforts to be fully prepared for changes stemming from the legal system. 

He stressed the urgent need to drastically push for stronger administrative and institutional reforms, especially the administrative apparatus, which was echoed by an American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) representative at the event. 

At the forum, which took place in Hanoi on December 2, participants seek ways to encourage the development of private enterprises. 

A report by the VBF Investment and Trade Working Group revealed the private sector still meets with difficulties accessing capital sources, land and energy as well as dealing with weak administrative system, workforce, and support industry. 

Meanwhile, taxation, customs, transportation, land management and trade agencies are yet to play their roles as providers of support for the sector, the report found. 

According to Head of the VBF Investment and Trade Working Group Fred Burke, to make the private sector the backbone of the business activity in Vietnam requires the creation of a fair playing ground for all players. 

The VCCI leader, meanwhile, pointed out that in the coming time, businesses’ growth will be determined by capacity and governance skills rather than their investments. 

The Government could lend a helping hand with capital assistance for small and medium enterprises, incentives for support industry players, and measures to boost information technology, Loc said. 

A more competitive climate, where decisions are made quickly, administrative procedures are simpler, and laws are enforced equally, will spur the development of private businesses and open up new opportunities, said the AmCham. 

Participants at the forum pointed out that in the context of international integration, Vietnam’s abundant workforce have yet been adequately trained to meet multinational companies’ requirements. 

Gaurav Gupta, Chairman of the AmCham in Vietnam, underlined that with young, plentiful and low-cost workforce as advantages, Vietnam is seeking to gain larger market shares in total global production, especially from multinational firms. 

A challenge came when average expense for factory workers in Vietnam is only one fourth of that in China, but the average productivity in the country is just equal to 7 percent of China’s average, a recent survey showed. 

A short of skilled technicians posed a thorny problem to Vietnam since the country is embarking on the goal of industrialisation and modernisation and broader international integration, the VBF Education and Training Working Group said. 

The group proposed state agencies, businesses and training institutes coordinate in sharing information on training programmes and recruitment needs to meet market demand. 

A survey by the Japan International Cooperation Agency on over 100 Japanese firms showed that 89 percent of the firms said they need technicians in the future. 

In a World Bank survey, 80 percent of employers said Vietnamese candidates for the posts of experts and technicians lack skills required to ensure work progress.-