A strong boost for private economy development

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Chi Dung made the above statement during an interview with the Viet Nam Government Portal (VGP) after the Politburo introduced Resolution No. 68 on private economy development.

The Resolution reflects significant shift in the viewpoints and awareness of the role and position of private economy. Previously, private economy was defined as a component of the national economy. Now, it is considered the most important driving force of the economy. This shift is of significant importance as private economy deserves better position given its contributions to the country's socio-economic development process.

With this new mindset, we will boldly give back legitimate rights to private firms, ensuring that they shall have fundamental rights such as the right to property, the right to freedom of business, the right to competition on equal footing, the right to fair access to the country's resources.

The aforesaid rights have been enshrined in the Constitution, however, in reality, there remain numerous barriers that limit the freedom of enterprises. That is why the Resolution strongly affirms that private firms shall be entitled to the right to freedom of business and considered as partners of the State in the course of national development.

All mechanisms and policies will be designed to facilitate the development of private firms and their participation in mega projects, strategic projects and important projects of the country.

The "ask-give" mechanism and "if not managed, ban it" thought will be eliminated in a bid to create a favorable environment for faster development of the private economic sector.

Regarding specific policies, the Resolution covers eight groups of policies to facilitate private firms' access to resources.

For land access, the Resolution requires each locality to set aside a land fund of around 20 ha or at least 5 percent of each industrial park for small and medium-sized firms and innovative startups.

Private firms shall be entitled to 30 percent reduction of land rental fees for five years since the date of signing land lease contract. This is a specific solution for enterprises, especially small and medium-sized firms to get access to land.

The Resolution also requests the establishment of a credit channel for small and medium-sized firms, startups, newly-registered firms, and enterprises operating in the priority fields of digital transformation and green transition.

The Resolution also stressed the need to adopt a mechanism to provide support in terms of lending rates for the aforesaid firms to promote their access to credit loans.

For handling violations, the Resolution affirms that for cases related to civil, administrative and economic matters, civil, administrative and economic measures shall prevail.

In cases where criminal proceedings have to be taken, priority is still given to using economic measures to remedy the consequences first and using the results of that remedy as a basis for considering and taking the next steps, in the direction of considering reducing criminal liability if the enterprise has actively overcome the consequences. This approach is extremely important and highly groundbreaking.

The Resolution also upholds the new role and mission of the private economic sector and stipulates that the State shall not take administrative interventions that are contrary to the market principles or distort market economy rules./.