Indonesia shared its experiences in reforming state-owned enterprises (SOEs) with Vietnam at a workshop held by the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences in Hanoi on March 27.

Laksamana Sukardi, former Minister of State-owned Enterprises, said the Indonesian government established a special committee which devised initiatives bettering the state governance of SOEs and ensuring the transparency and effectiveness of these businesses’ operations.

Indonesia has carried out a host of measures to reform SOEs, for example restructuring loans, selling ill-performing enterprises, assigning an independent committee to appoint SOEs’ executives, and forcing entrepreneurs to submit property declarations to the Anti-Corruption Commission before and after they take their positions.

The country started the reform with the best-performing businesses and sold them to major partners, thus attracting the interest of investors, Sukardi noted, adding that only 137 SOEs in Indonesia remain. The number of banks in the country has also declined from 250 to 20.

PhD. Nguyen Dinh Cung, Acting Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management, said contrary to Indonesia, Vietnam equitises SOEs first then applies modern administration methods. However, a number of difficulties have also arisen during the reform process.

Indonesian experts suggested Vietnam should establish a national fund for SOEs obtained from various sources but under a single management mode to help the businesses overcome the transition period.-VNA