On the morning of February 22, 2024, the National Economics University, in collaboration with the Japanese National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies, organized a policy dialogue discussion with the topic: "30 years of Vietnam's development: Looking back on the past and responding to new challenges", with the participation of hundreds of domestic and foreign delegates.
Overview of the dialogue
Attending the dialogue, on the part of the delegates of the Central Ministries and Departments, there were Ms. Pham Thi Hong Yen - Standing Member of the National Assembly's Economic Committee; Mr. Bui Xuan Du - Director of the Secretariat - Editorial Department, Government Office; Mr. Nguyen Quang Huy - Deputy Director of General Economic Department, Central Economic Commission; Mr. Nguyen Hoang Duong - Deputy Director of the Department of Finance and Banking, Ministry of Finance; Mr. Vu Thanh Son - Director of the Department of Personnel Training and Development, Central Organizing Committee; Ms. Tran Thi Thu - Deputy Director of the Department of General Statistics and Dissemination of Statistical Information.
On the side of economic experts, there is Professor. Tran Van Tho - Wasade University, Japan, member of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Group; Professor Kenichi Ohno - GRIPS Institute for Japanese Policy Studies; Ms. Pham Chi Lan - Former Vice President of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Mr. Le Dang Doanh - Former Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management Research; Mr. Nguyen Bich Lam - Former Director General of the General Statistics Office; Mr. Le Xuan Ba - Former Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management Research; Mr. Vo Tri Thanh - Institute for Brand Strategy and Competitiveness Research; Mr. Ngo Tri Long - Former Director of the Price Market Research Institute (Ministry of Finance); Prof. Dr. Nguyen Quang Thai - Chairman of the Vietnam Economic Science Association; Dr. Nguyen Dinh Cung - Member of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Group, former Director of the Central Institute for Economic Research and Management, senior economic expert; Dr. Vu Tien Loc - Former Chairman of VCCI, and other economic experts.
On behalf of representatives of universities and academies, there were Mr. Dao Ngoc Tien - Vice President of Foreign Trade University; Mr. Bui Van Huyen - Director of the Institute of Economics, Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics; Mr. Le Xuan Sang - Deputy Director of Vietnam Institute of Economics; Mr. Chu Khanh Lan - Deputy Director of Banking Strategy Institute; Mr. Ngo Tuan Nghia - Director of the Institute of Political Economy.
On the side of the National Economics University, there was Prof. Dr. Pham Hong Chuong - President; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Duc Tho - Secretary of the Party Committee, Chairman of the School Council; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hieu - Vice President; Prof. Dr. Tran Tho Dat - Chairman of the Science and Training Council; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thanh Ha - Chairman of the Advisory Council; with members of the Science & Training Council, Advisory Council, and former school leaders; Representatives of leaders of Departments, Faculty, Institutes, and Centers; with the participation of more than 100 delegates who are scholars, economic experts at home and abroad, representatives of Committees, Ministries and branches, scientists, international organizations, and leadership representatives of institutes and universities.
Accordingly, the goal of the dialogue is to evaluate Vietnam's development achievements over the past three decades, identify development challenges in the new context, and propose several policy recommendations for Vietnam to achieve sustainable growth and become a high-income country. The dialogue results will provide more information for research and advice to the Politburo, Secretariat, National Assembly, and Government on significant guidelines and policies on the country's socio-economic development in the new context.
Prof. Dr. Pham Hong Chuong - President of National Economics University, gave a speech
Speaking at the dialogue, Prof. Dr. Pham Hong Chuong - President of the National Economics University, said that over the past three decades, Vietnam has strongly transformed from a centrally planned economy to a centralized market economy, from a closed and import substitution economy to one of the most open economies; from a lower-middle-income economy to a middle-income economy. Currently, we are aiming for a greater goal of becoming a "high-income developed country" by 2045. According to Prof. Dr. Pham Hong Chuong, the economy will have to increase to achieve this goal of growing at an average annual rate of 7% over the next 20 years. Vietnam also aims for greener and more inclusive growth, pledging to reduce methane emissions by 30% and end deforestation by 2030 while achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
The President of the National Economics University said that a number of big trends are shaping the future of Vietnam. The strong development of the 4.0 industrial revolution, digital technology, and artificial intelligence brings opportunities to improve competitiveness and economic sustainability, product quality, services, and production processes. Still, it poses many significant challenges, such as infrastructure, an increasingly aging population, etc. At the same time, there are political, social, and institutional issues.
Besides, the global economic environment faces severe challenges due to instability and political conflicts in many parts of the world. This poses unprecedented challenges and could weaken the development progress of Vietnam and that of humanity in the near future.
Prof. Dr. Pham Hong Chuong emphasized that, according to the general assessment of researchers, the economic growth that Vietnam has had in recent decades has had a significant impact from liberalization at the right time, with advantages of geographical location, rich resources, and abundant labor.
"However, can Vietnam continue to grow rapidly and sustainably, becoming a high-income country like South Korea and Taiwan have done in recent decades, or will we fall into the "middle-income trap" as experts warn? For the development process not to stop, we need to have strategic orientations and specific actions to maintain rapid, sustainable growth," said Prof. Dr. Pham Hong Chuong.
Prof. Dr. Ngo Thang Loi - National Economics University presented "The Impact of Economic Growth on Social Progress in Vietnam after 30 Years of Innovation"
Prof. Tran Van Tho - Waseda University, Japan, presented "Assessment of 30 Years of Vietnam's Development and Policy Recommendations for Sustainable Growth and Becoming a High-income Country"
Prof. Kenichi Ohno - Japan National Institute for Policy Research, presented "Implementing the Next Stage of Industrialization: Experiences from Countries in the Region and Policy Suggestions for Leaders, Technocrats and Policymakers"
According to the general assessment of many economic researchers, Vietnam's recent growth is mainly due to the impact of liberalization at the right time, advantages in geographical location, rich resources, and abundant labor...
Can Vietnam continue to grow rapidly and sustainably, gradually entering the group of high-income countries, as South Korea and Taiwan have recently done, or will we follow in the footsteps of some other countries? After a long time, neighboring countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia are still struggling to escape the middle-income level or fall into the middle-income trap, which is a big question.
Experts say that the period 2024 - 2030 is decisive for Vietnam to transform itself into an industrial country in the spirit of Vietnam's Socio-Economic Development Strategy for the period 2021 - 2030. This is an important milestone and opens up many development opportunities for our country's economy, especially under the impact of globalization, international economic integration, and the 4.0 Industrial Revolution. Therefore, reviewing and evaluating development achievements over the past three decades, as well as analyzing the ability to respond to the new context, is extremely important.
At the discussion, many speakers gave an overview of Vietnam's development situation over the past 30 years and analyzed the existing problems and issues facing the economy; Analyze Vietnam's development policies and compare them with the experiences of countries in the region in developing and implementing development policies. At the same time, suggest some policies for the Government, managers, and the Vietnamese business community to respond to new challenges.