Vietnam hopes for OECD’s support in inclusive growth

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam needs cooperation, experience sharing and policy consultation from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in various fields for its sustainable and inclusive growth fulfillment, said a Foreign Ministry official during a seminar in Hanoi on November 18.

The Vietnam-OECD partnership potential is huge, especially when the Southeast Asian country is entering a new period of development and international integration, said Vu Quang Minh, Assistant to Foreign Minister and head of the Department of Economic Affairs at the event, which discussed cooperation prospects between the two sides in spurring inclusive growth.

As an active member of the OECD Development Centre and Development Assistance Committee, Vietnam has coordinated with the organisation in completing a report evaluating policies on agriculture, science and technology and investment, he said, adding that the country has also actively responded to the OECD Southeast Asia Programme that was launched from 2014.

Minh affirmed that the country is willing to collaborate closely with the OECD to implement the programme in a practical and effective manner, while integrating projects under the programme with the Vietnam-OECD cooperation.

Vietnam hopes to receive stronger support from the organisation in strengthening its economic reform and improving its international integration efficiency through bilateral, tripartite and regional cooperation frameworks, he added.

Meanwhile, OECD representative Alessandro Goglio said that Southeast Asia is currently one of the most dynamic regions with increasingly important role in the world.

He noted that Vietnam has made significant progresses in national industrialisation and modernisation, maintaining high growth and recording impressive poverty reduction achievements.

He suggested that the country should continue developing infrastructure system, restructuring State-owned enterprises and improving the investment environment as well as completing labour and social policies to enhance productivity towards inclusive growth goals.

Emphasising that Vietnam is one of the prioritised partners of the OECD in the region, Goglio pledged that the organisation stays ready to foster affiliations with Vietnam in the sectors of the country’s priority, especially in designing a socio-economic development plan for 2016-2020.

Participants also evaluated the outcomes of Vietnam-OECD cooperation from 2012-2015 and the prospects of the ties from 2016-2020. They also considered prioritised areas and activities that could help Vietnam reach sustainable and inclusive growth targets by 2020.

The same day, OECD experts also had working sessions with the Ministries of Justice, Industry and Trade and Finance to discuss cooperation orientations in specific areas.-VNA