VietNamNet Bridge – Drastic measures should be taken by ministries, agencies and provinces to meet the 5.8 per cent GDP growth target this year, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung told deputies at a national conference on planning and investment last week.

A production line at the Juky Viet Nam Company at Tan Thuan Industrial Park in HCM City. The Government has pledged to offer more policies to help businesses and tax breaks for workers.

The three-day conference, which has drawn deputies from authorities in 63 provinces, will build socio-economic development from 2016-20.

It will also discuss the law on public investment and bidding approved by the National Assembly.

Dung said the conference was also a chance to implement a synchronised and accurate calculation of GDP by provinces and central agencies in line with international practice of GDP," he said.

"We should point out the successes and weak points of the previous target in order to build a successful new five-year plan.

"We have targeted a 5.8 per cent growth of GDP this year, but the figure will be unattainable if ministries, agencies and provinces do not accelerate the socio-economic development plan," he said.

The Prime Minister also said socio-economic targets in 2014-15 were crucial to the 2016-20 plan.

The Minister of Planning and Investment, Bui Quang Vinh, said Viet Nam wanted to boost average economic growth between 6.5 and 7 per cent in 2016-20 and reduce the number of poor households by 1.5 per cent annually. Inflation would be kept at 7 per cent."

Vinh said the plan set up many challenges for Viet Nam in changing the economic structure, particularly on how to improve the effectiveness and competitiveness of public investment.

"The 2016-20 plan will help ministries, agencies, provincial leadership target their investment plans accurately," he said.

The minister said the debut of the mid-term plan would limit corruption and rambling investment in different ineffective industries and projects.

"The five-year plan promotes transparency, as the investment capital allocation for provinces, ministries and industries will be known publicly," Vinh said.

Vinh said it would stop random statistics on GDP from provinces seen in the past years.

He warned that provinces must balance debt before submitting the five-year plan for approval.

Deputy minister of finance, Nguyen Cong Nghiep said State budget revenue would fall this year, but budget spending would increase by 2015.

He said the Government offered various preferential policies to help businesses and tax breaks for labourers.

He said the State budget revenue would increase domestic revenue from 64 per cent in 2006 to 71 per cent in 2015.

"The State budget will face many investment pressures for development, spending on society and paying debt in the next few years," Nghiep said.

He said that increased salaries for public servants was also a burden for the budget.

"A decision to increase salaries to VND100,000 would lead to spending VND40 trillion (US$1.9 billion) from the State budget, increasing overspending by 5 per cent," Nghiep said.

Chairman of HCM City's people's committee Le Hoang Quan said the Government and ministries should review land clearance compensation for public projects and loan allocation for public investment.

He said the HCM City-Dau Giay expressway connecting HCM City and Vung Tau City had to make compensation of VND1.2 trillion (US$56 million) for construction of 4km of road.

Minister of industry and trade, Vu Huy Hoang, said the Government should enable domestic businesses to join bidding for public investment projects.

VNS/VNN