Illustrative image (Source: VNA) The country should step up COVID-19 vaccine rollouts, andminimise the number of infection and fatality rate, Kien told Sai Gon GiaiPhong newspaper.
The global economy is on the mend with recovering demandin foreign markets, he said. Vietnam, however, has seen its production capacityand business resilience weakening immensely following prolongedrestrictions induced by COVID-19.
Lessons from vaccine powerhouses show that Vietnam mustaccelerate the approval of home-grown vaccines and soon put them into use, henoted.
Citing the fact that many studies all around the worldindicate that coronavirus vaccines may not provide lifetime immunity so boostershots must be offered annually, he said if the country cannot produce thevaccine itself and must rely on foreign donations, the effectiveness of itsvirus control efforts will greatly suffer.
The government should procure home-grown vaccine dosesfor mass vaccination under a proper mechanism to encourage domesticmanufacturing, he urged.
He further said as impacts of the pandemic greatly varyamong economic sectors, support packages should be delivered to enterprisesbased on how much they are affected by the pandemic, instead of the same amountof aid provided for all.
The economist recommended three focuses for Vietnam torevive and develop the economy as followed – prioritizing COVID-19 fight and expanding immunization coverage to protect public health and the economy;accumulating resources for economic recovery and offering aid tolabour-intensive companies; and reviving the economy in tandem with fosteringeconomic restructuring towards digital and green transformation.
He said it comes as no surprise to him that the Ministryof Planning and Investment has revised down the GDP growth forecast to justabout 3.5 – 4 percent this year, much lower than the initial projection.
The move is necessary as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City andother southern cities and provinces have imposed social distancing under thePM’s Directives 16 and 16 Plus to stamp out the spread of the virus for months,according to the economist.
Goods and passenger transport nationwide has beenrestricted or suspended; business, production and investment have remainedstagnant and declined with enterprises struggling with rising costs, heexplained. So it is understandable if some economic goals, which were devised without taking into account unexpected damages from the COVID-19, cannot be achieved.
“We must accept it and find ways to adapt,” Kien said.
Referring to the National Assembly’s Standing Committee’splan to adopt new support measures for affected businesses on October 1 at the latest,he noted that the uncertainties of the pandemic will negatively affect theState budget revenue in the coming months.
The support is clearly important but it must come withboth fiscal and monetary policies as well as the State budget’s resiliencetaken into account, he said./.
VNA
