Dr. Nguyen Khac Giang, Visiting Fellow at the Vietnam Studies Programme at the Singapore-based ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, said the Vietnamese economy has been more open over the past 10 years. Its favorable business environment has attracted investment from advanced technology sectors, including the semiconductor industry.
Political trust also plays a crucial role in attracting foreign semiconductor investment, he said, adding that many countries have confidence in Vietnam, due to its domestic political stability and friendly diplomatic relations with other nations.
He added that it is very important that Vietnam had elevated its relations with many countries, such as the US, Australia, Japan, and the Republic of Korea, over the last two years. The comprehensive strategic partnership is a good supplement to a friendly and supportive business environment, which is attractive to semiconductor investors.
Meanwhile, Csaba Bundik, MBA Founder of Tenjin AI, former director of EuroCham Vietnam, described Vietnam as a stable and trusted partner. The government made necessary decisions when reopening up the country when it was deemed reasonable, which received a lot of positive opinions from overseas investors.
In addition to economic and political factors, experts highlight Vietnam’s abundance of talented human resources, and energy availability as appealing reasons for foreign investors to choose the country over others.
Notably, major foreign companies have been investing in Vietnam and achieved certain success, which further consolidates confidence of overseas investors in Vietnam’s semiconductor landscape.
For example, Intel, a leading semiconductor manufacturer of the US, has disbursed nearly 2 billion USD in investment in the Saigon Hi-Tech Park, and it plans to expand investment in Vietnam in the near future.
Marc Knapper, US Ambassador to Vietnam, said the pledges the US made to work with Vietnam on semiconductors, and help create a high-tech, innovation-led economy were extremely significant because it is all about promoting US high-tech investment in Vietnam.
It is also about workforce development and training and education so that Vietnam can have the engineers and computer scientists and IT workers. The country needs up to 80,000 over the next several years, and the US is a part of this story. We want to be part of this shared effort with Vietnam. So I think what we're seeing now in terms of semiconductors is just the beginning.
Marc Knapper, US Ambassador to Vietnam
Executive Director of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Hanoi Adam Sitkoff told the Vietnam News Agency reporter that both the US and Vietnam want to work together in the semiconductor industry.
The US government sees that Vietnam has been successful in many areas economically, and they figure that the next phase of economic competitiveness is to try to attract that semiconductor supply chain here into Vietnam. It's not going to be easy. It takes a lot of high-skilled people and a lot of money. But I think that there are a lot of advantages in Vietnam and this is something that we look forward to working on.
Adam Sitkoff, Executive Director of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Hanoi
Experts suggest that Vietnam capitalize on its exceptional advantages in developing the semiconductor industry to strengthen mutual support and cooperation among nations, foster collaboration between businesses, educational institutions, and government training facilities.
A comprehensive development strategy should prioritize attracting foreign direct investment, while nurturing the growth of domestic semiconductor companies./.
