As many as 25 traffic projects in Vietnam could be suspended or delayed due to capital shortages, according to the Ministry of Transport.

If the huge capital for public investment can be brought into the economy, Vietnam would be able to save GDP growth.

As Vietnam employs unprecedented measures to recover from the economic ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic with hastened disbursement of public investment, supervision must be enhanced to prevent profiteering, politicians have warned.

VinaCapital has predicted a 3 percent GDP growth rate reduction because of Covid-19, while Fitch has projected a modest growth rate of 3.3 percent, and ADB 4.8 percent.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment has asked for corporate income tax (CIT) to be cut for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by half this year in an effort to boost growth when the COVID-19 pandemic eases.

The Ministry of Finance will focus on improving the business climate and creating favourable conditions for businesses to accelerate growth, which is important to ensure State budget revenue amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Boosting the disbursement of all planned public investment would help increase this year’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 0.42 percentage points, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Ministries are working to convince Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc to amend divestment plans at some large State-owned enterprises (SOEs).

The sluggish disbursement of public investment is attributable to the combination of three major factors.

The Presidential Office held a press conference in Hanoi on July 4 to announce the President’s order on the promulgation of seven laws which were adopted at the seventh session of the 14th National Assembly.

The draft revised law on public investment was at the focus of attention at the National Assembly during the morning of May 28, the 7th working day of the NA’s 7th session.

Some economists warn that the higher investment capital for national important projects may make it more difficult to manage public projects and lend a hand to unnecessary use of state funds.

Vietnam is still under big pressure to call for capital for domestic debt swap, with 50 percent of domestic debts expected to reach maturity in the next three years, according to the World Bank.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Localities and ministries this year must tighten controls on public investment activity, especially in the stages of fund appraisal and balance, approval in principle and final approval.

Associate Professor Tran Hoang Ngan, a member of the National Assembly Economics Commission, tells the Giao duc Viet Nam e-newspaper that he is confident the Government will implement in full the Politburo Resolution on managing public assets

The budget deficit in the first half of the year hit VNĐ82.9 trillion (US$3.7 billion) due to rising recurrent expenditures and the repayment of debts, the General Statistics Office reported.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Viet Nam needs to shift from a low middle-income to higher-income nation and avoid the middle-income trap by reforming policy content, structure and organisation,

VietNamNet Bridge - Many bidding documents require tenderers to provide import products, even if the products can be made domestically. 

 VietNamNet Bridge – Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh acknowledged that large numbers of public investment projects have fallen behind schedule and have even faced cost overruns.

VietNamNet Bridge – Local authorities and ministries are drawing up large public investment projects, even though the state budget remains modest.