Vietnamese expatriates support national growth

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnamese expatriate communities worldwide have contributed significantly to socio-economic development back home in recent years, said Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Vu Hong Nam.

There are approximately 4.5 million Vietnamese living and studying abroad across 109 countries and territories.

According to Nam, who is also Chairman of the State Commission for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, overseas Vietnamese have established 6,300 enterprises in 51 out of 63 Vietnam’s cities and provinces. These firms are operating 2,000 projects focusing on commerce, tourism, construction, real estate and agriculture.

Overseas Vietnamese are also major shareholder in many leading domestic companies like Techcombank, VinGroup, Eurowindow and SunGroup.

Their investments have created jobs, provided vocational training, improved socio-economic growth, and contributed to the State budget, said Nam.

The official reiterated the Party and State policies that consider the OV communities are an indispensable part of the nation, valuable human resources, and a bridge connecting Vietnam to the rest of the world.

The Government has devised favourable policies to assist their business activities at home. The amended 2014 citizenship law allows expatriates to keep or re-gain Vietnamese nationality, while new laws on land and housing permit them to buy and own properties in Vietnam.

Most recently, Decree 82/2015/ND-CP has approved visa exemption for not only overseas Vietnamese but also their spouses and children.

The Chairman noted his agency is constantly update information to promptly assist the communities and has received positive feedback from them on the implementation of the State’s macroeconomic policy.

He added that the OV businesses can be an effective channel to bring Vietnamese goods to foreign markets, underscoring their advantages that include in-depth understanding of both domestic and foreign market as well as supply-demand potential.-VNA