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Donors eye economic stability
Stabilising the macro-economy and focusing on sustainable development would be the major theme of the yearly Consultative Group meeting in Ha Noi next month, World Bank's Director, Viet Nam, Victoria Kwakwa told a news conference yesterday.
The director listed the major issues to be discussed at the two-day meeting from Tuesday, December 7 as:
The key opportunities and threats to Viet Nam as a Middle-Income Country (MIC); priorities for sustainable development; ensuring social inclusion; and the future of development partnerships as Viet Nam enters the group of medium-income countries.
Viet Nam now had to deal with the difficulties and challenges of a middle-income country while maintaining and consolidating the benefits it had gained as a low-income country, Director Kwakwa said .
The meeting would provide participants with the chance to discuss the opportunities and threats faced by Viet Nam as an MIC.
They were expected to discuss the macro-economy and directions for 2011; Governance, transparency and the effectiveness of the State-owned sector; governance and corruption.
Director Kwakwa said middle-income countries had gradually raised their poverty standard and it was time for Viet Nam to do the same as its poverty benchmark was still the region's lowest.
As a result, the meeting was scheduled to talk more about poverty reduction; poverty benchmarks and the targeting of persistent poverty.
Viet Nam's status as a middle-income country also meant that its relationship with development partners would change.
The country might need and receive fewer preferential loans and assistance from sponsor countries, but, in turn, it could raise a clearer and stronger voice in forums and share equality with its partners, she said.
Although the commitment of financial support might decrease with MIC status, it also proved that the sponsors were more positive about Viet Nam's development.
The Director said she hoped that Viet Nam would change from a support receiver to a sponsor of other countries.
The Director together with Planning and Investment Minister Vo Hong Phuc will chair the Consultative Group meeting and Viet Nam Government representatives, bilateral and multilateral donors and non governmental organisations will attend.
The Viet Nam Business Forum of domestic and foreign participants will be held tomorrow; the World Bank's International Finance Corporation and the Planning and Investment Ministry are its organisers.
The forum will gauge perceptions of the investment environment; brief participants about Viet Nam's economy and the plans for 2011 and assess reports from working groups.
IFC Regional Manager for Viet Nam, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand Simon Andrews said ways to improve the competitiveness of Viet Nam as well as recommendations to upgrade the banking system and labour market would top the agenda.
The forum is designed promote dialogue between the Viet Nam Government and the business community so as to attract more investment and stimulate growth.
Development partners committed more than US$8 billion in support of Viet Nam's poverty reduction and development agenda at last year's meeting.
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