Achievements of the "dual goal"

In April 2021, Vietnam saw nearly14,900 newly established enterprises with total registered capital of VND179.9 trillion, up 33.1% in the number of enterprises and up 59.1% in terms of registered capital compared to March 2021. In addition, the country also witnessed 5,745 enterprises resuming their operation in April, up 26.8% compared to March and up 50.8% compared to the same period in 2020.

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In the first four months of 2021, nearly 44,200 enterprises registered for establishment, the highest number in the 2017-2021 period with total registered capital of VND627.7 trillion and total number of registered employees of 340,300, an increase of 17.5% in terms of number of enterprises, up 41% in terms of registered capital, and up 7.8% in terms of number of employees compared to the same period in 2020.

Moreover, existing enterprises also increased their capital by VND792.9 trillion in the first four months of this year, raising the total for registered capital and supplemented capital to VND1.42 quadrillion in the first four months of 2021.

The four-month period also saw 19,300 enterprises returning to operation, raising total number of enterprises being established or resuming operations to 63,400.

It can be affirmed that this is a positive signal, reflecting the confidence of the business community after the successful implementation of the “dual goal” of both combating the COVID-19 pandemic and promoting socio-economic development. At the same time, it is a positive signal of the development prospects for enterprises in the future.

The confidence comes from the fact that Vietnam has always actively and effectively controlled the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic prevention and control plans are flexibly deployed in order to quickly respond to the outbreaks of the disease in each level and each area while maintaining life in the “new normal state”.

In particular, the Government, sectors and localities have also implemented a series of solutions to support businesses and people affected by the pandemic, including the reschedule of tax payment deadlines, exemptions and reductions of fees, reductions of credit interest rates, and others to ensure goods circulation and stimulate domestic demand without delaying production and business activities.

The trust of the business community also comes from constant improvement of the business environment and the removal of “barrier” administrative procedures, helping reduce time, costs and open up new investment opportunities for people and businesses.

That confidence has increasingly consolidated with inflation put under control and the macroeconomy being kept stable. The “dual goal” has helped Vietnam maintain positive economic growth in 2020.

In the first four months of 2021, the gross domestic product (GDP) continued to expand by 4.48%, in which, many important industries and production sectors recovered strongly, almost equal to the time before the outbreak of the pandemic.

This achievement helps Vietnam to be confident in the rest of the year 2021, but it also requires more effort and determination because the pandemic continues to be complicated. New variants of SARS-CoV-2 virus have led to increasing number of COVID-19 infected cases in recent days. Although the pandemic is still under control, each level, sector, business and individual should not be subjective or neglectful.

From an economic perspective, although the growth momentum has been maintained, the impact of the pandemic is still very large. In the first four months of 2021, besides the number of newly established enterprises, there were also 51,500 enterprises suspending their business, stopping operations waiting for dissolution procedures and completing dissolution procedures, up 23.3% over the same period in 2020. Thus, an average of 15,900 enterprises was established and came back to operation each month while nearly 12,900 enterprises withdrew from the market each month.

In the Resolution issued at the Government's regular meeting in April 2021, the Government called on the solidarity of all people with a focus on fighting against the pandemic and consistently implementing the set “dual goal” while the Government will proactively carry out solutions in support of people and businesses affected by the pandemic.

Specifically, the Government will maintain macroeconomic stability, control inflation, and promote the spirit of self-reliance and innovation to solve problems in institutions and policies to mobilise all resources for national development and for favourable environment for production and business.

Major solutions to foster growth have been pointed out, including promoting the disbursement of public investment, reducing spending aligned with boosting budget revenue from sustainable sources, taking advantage of the recovery momentum to promote industrial production and services, and utilising free trade agreements to boost exports.

The number of enterprises entering or leaving the market acts as a “thermometer” to measure the “health” of the economy. The “dual goal” that we have persistently and confidently implemented provides the means to turn prospects and opportunities into concrete results.