Perfecting the State of the rule of law, ensuring people’s freedom and democracy, and completing the market economy mechanism constitute a driving force and also key measures to improve the national economy’s effectiveness and competitiveness, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said on December 5.

At the Vietnam Development Partnership Forum (VDPF 2014) in Hanoi, the leader further said the country will continue active international integration, explore benefits from existing bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements (FTAs), and promote negotiations for new-generation FTAs.

He also described the aforementioned actions as a basis for the Vietnamese Government to further facilitate trade and foreign direct investments.

The PM said the Cabinet’s key missions in 2015 include mobilising and using resources in the most effective manner, strongly reforming administrative procedures, continuously improving the business climate, and better ensuring social equality and welfares.

The fight against corruption will be among the Government’s priorities in the year, he stated.

The forum, held under the theme “Accelerating economic institutional reform, strengthening resilience and enhancing the competitiveness of Vietnam’s economy”, sought recommendations pertaining to institutional economic market reforms and the development of the private sector to the Government.

Taking the floor, World Bank Country Director for Vietnam Victoria Kwakwa said heavy cost of the global financial crisis requires all countries to incessantly improve their competitiveness towards economic development and guaranteed social welfares.

Vietnam has been drastically improving its investment environment, which has helped it become an attractive investment destination and a country with the second fastest GDP per capita growth in the world over the last two decades, she noted.

With the Government’s issuance of Resolution No.19 on improving the business climate and national competitiveness and the National Assembly’s approval of relating laws like the Law on Bankruptcy, and Law on Enterprises, and the Law on Investment in 2014, it is now the right time to build next institutional reform measures, Victoria Kwakwa said.

She suggested intensifying the coordination among Government agencies, strongly restructuring State-owned enterprises with a focus on quality, and more drastically settling bad debt and restructuring the banking system.

She affirmed that development partners will continue standing by the Vietnamese Government in realising its development goals.

Over the last 20 years, international development partners have pledged over 80 billion USD in official development assistance to Vietnam. Over half of the finance has been disbursed, greatly contributing to the country’s socio-economic development.

At the VDPF 2014, PM Nguyen Tan Dung, Vietnamese senior officials, and representatives from international development partners and organisations discussed openly a number of issues regarding the Cabinet’s viewpoints and directing measures.

VNA/VNN