Socialist Republic of Vietnam

HANOI, Jan 29 Asia Pulse - Vietnam is devising uniform solutions to both attract more foreign investment and make it more efficient.

For example, State management agencies will issue guidelines for implementing the Foreign Investment Law in the first four months of this year.

They will follow this by submitting a formula for the trial equitization of foreign-invested enterprises, FIEs, to the Government in the second quarter to help them participate in the securities and capital markets.

Eventually, a common code will be introduced for both domestic and foreign-invested enterprises.

This year, the State will continue lowering commodity and service charges. Starting with removal the two-price policy for electricity, telecommunications and transport and application of uniform prices to both domestic and foreign-invested enterprises.

Incentive policies for high-tech, farm-produce processing and fisheries projects as well as to investment in poor areas will be designed to attract more investors and a proper tax system built and implemented to boost the production of engineering and electronic products.

Meanwhile, the building of regulations governing credit, investment guarantee, foreign exchange and compensation for land acquisition will help businesses remove obstacles in accord with international practice.

Improving State management of FIEs is another option.

Ministries and localities have to make plans to encourage foreign investment in mechanical engineering, electricity and electronics, chemicals, construction materials, garments, footwear, telecommunications, public transport and port construction.

The coordination between central and local agencies in simplifying administrative and investment procedures is also an urgent task in strengthening State management.

Vietnam hopes to attract more investment this year. Negotiations for a US$ 250 million mobile phone service project, two Build-Operate-Transfer projects; each worth US$ 400-500 million, to build Phu My Power Plants 2-2 and 3; a US$ 120 million farm-produce processing project, and a number of projects in industrial zones totally worth US$ 1 billion are continuing between Vietnamese businessmen and foreign partners.

Last year, as much as US$ 2.398 billion was attracted into Viet Nam, an increase of 11 per cent over 1999. Of this, US$ 1.97 billion came from 311 projects licensed during the year and US$ 628.4 million from 163 working projects which were permitted to increase their investment.

Foreign-invested enterprises implemented more than US$ 2.2 billion investment capital in 2000, earning US$ 6.5 billion, a 35 per cent rise over 1999. Their export turnover was US$ 3.32 billion in the year, a year-on-year increase of 28 per cent.

These enterprises provided 349,000 full-time jobs and about 1 million part-time jobs.

(VNA)