Vietnam’s National Assembly, the country’s highest legislative body, has said the government needs to have well-prepared economic plans in case the Covid-19 pandemic prolongs.

Minister and Chairman of the Government Office Mai Tien Dung said at the 53rd session of the NA’s Standing Committee on February 23. Photo: VGP

Chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee for External Relations Nguyen Van Giau said an accurate assessment of the situation is necessary to find comprehensive solutions in the course of uncertainties of the global health crisis.

It requires strategies that can take advantage of the world integration process with a focus on regional development, agriculture, and increasing living standards of ethnic minorities and those in remote areas, Giau said at the 53rd session of the NA’s Standing Committee on February 23.

Giau's request is part of NA's feedback on the 2016-2021 government performance report.

He highlighted the signing of different free trade agreements, market expansion, macroeconomic stability, maintained balance of payments, and trade surplus by the outgoing cabinet.

The NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan said she was impressed with the governance of the Prime Minister, Deputy PMs, and the cabinet members who are very brave, confident and knowledgeable.

Speaking at the meeting, Minister and Chairman of the Government Office Mai Tien Dung said the government has taken along the policy making with law enforcement, stepping up administration reforms, improving business investment environment and the national competitiveness.

Of which, the government has pursued its goal of stabilizing macro-economy, controlling inflation, promoting export and stimulating domestic consumption, improving productivity, supporting startups, and attracting resources for development.

He stressed the importance of pursuing the dual goal including containing the virus and developing economy, with the aim of making Vietnam a safe shelter for foreign investment.

In 2020, Vietnam’s GDP grew at an impressive pace of 2.91%, the lowest in a decade but among the world’s highest, statistics by the General Statistics Office (GSO) showed.

Vietnam ranked 10th among the 53 most resilient economies in the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Bloomberg’s Covid-19 Resilience Ranking.

Vietnam scored 74.3 points out of the maximum 100, above some regional peers namely Singapore with 74.2, Thailand 70.2, Indonesia 66.1, Malaysia 61.4, and the Philippines 48.9.

Regarding the general outlook for 2021, Goohoon Kwon and Irene Choi, economists at Goldman Sachs, commented:

“In light of the stronger than expected Q4 GDP, we raise our 2021 forecast to 8.2% from 7.7% before. We continue to expect a strong acceleration in growth for the year ahead in 2021, helped by a global rebound from pandemic shocks.”

“Our panelists expect GDP to expand 7.5% in 2021, which is up 0.2 percentage points from last month’s forecast, and 6.8% in 2022” he said.