Up to 76 percent of 227 interviewed domestic and foreign businesses said they will expand their operations in Vietnam over the next three years, according to a report on Vietnam ’s business environment.

The report, jointly conducted by the World Bank (WB), the International Financial Corporation (IFC) and the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment, was announced at the Vietnam Business Forum in Hanoi on December 2.

According to the report, the encouraging development of the domestic economy, the growth of the Vietnamese and regional markets, the government’s efforts to open up the market under the WTO commitments and increasing export opportunities are all important factors that have led to many businesses deciding to expand their operations in Vietnam .

The majority of those interviewed said that the business environment in Vietnam has improved a great deal. The assessment is in line with the WB’s 2011 Business Environment Report which was released earlier.

In this report, Vietnam jumped 10 places in terms of an improved business improvement, from 88 th position in 2009 to 78 th in 2010.

The country’s infrastructure and telecommunications network has seen remarkable improvements while land, tax and labour have changed little, they added.

Several businesses raised worries about shortcomings in several fields such as administrative procedures, intellectual property protection, preventing counterfeit goods and a lack of high-quality human resources.

They also proposed several recommendations to the government, focusing on administrative reforms./.