Ha Noi (VNA) – Viet Nam will see large-scale foreign-invested projects, with some reaching 5 billion USD, this year, a senior official from the Ministry Planning and Investment (MPI) said.
At a seminar on foreign direct investment held in Ha Noi on January 16, the ministry official also said that hi-tech industries, infrastructure development and exports remain the fields where foreign investment is encouraged.
Head of MPI’s Foreign Investment Department Phan Huu Thang reiterated the government’s pledge to create favourable conditions for foreign investors, reform financial and banking systems, and improve the quality of human resources and supporting industries.
In 2007, one year after the country joined the World Trade Organisation, foreign investors vowed to pour in 20.3 billion USD, including 18 billion USD in new projects and 2.4 billion USD in additional investment to existing projects.
The foreign investment mainly went to the hi-tech industries, petro-chemistry, electricity, seaports, and tourism, was equal to 50 percent of the foreign direct investment amount posted in the 2002-2005 period, and 20 percent of the sum recorded in the past two decades.
“The upsurge in foreign investment was drawn by improvement in investment and business environment and economic policies in accordance with the World Trade Organisation regulations,” Thang said.
He noted the deregulation of 11 out of 12 service sectors, improvements in legal environment involved finance, monetary and business rights, and the application of WTO dispute handling mechanism to increase the competitiveness of locally-made products.