Vietnam regards its integration into the World Trade Organisation (WTO) as not a final target but a continuation of the national course of economic reform that focuses on facilitating trade and investment activities.
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh made the remark at a conference in Hanoi on November 28 to announce the outcomes of the first review of trade policies and practices of Vietnam at the WTO.
In addition to Vietnam’s noteworthy economic achievements after six years of integration, the country has shortcomings in realising its commitments to the WTO such as complicated administrative formalities and the lack of transparency and unity of implementing trade policies, added Khanh.
The country recognises the shortcomings and strives to overcome them in the coming time, he stated.
Vietnam has seriously fulfilled the commitments to opening its market, gradually perfecting legal frameworks in addition to creating a fair and favourable business climate for both domestic and foreign investors, he noted.
Thanks to the integration, Vietnamese exporters have had better access to foreign markets and greatly contributed to national export turnover.
Many administrative reform programmes have also been carrying out effectively with focal points placed on curtailing administrative formalities, which help businesses cut costs and raise the effectiveness of their investments.
Addressing the event, Head of the EU Delegation to Vietnam Ambassador Franz Jessen highlighted the significant outcomes of the review and required the country to continue its reform.
He further said the economy needs appropriate trade policies to enhance its comprehensive effectiveness, capacity and competitiveness, which are key to efficiently implementing the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement to be signed in the future.
The EU will continue to support Vietnam through the European Trade Policy and Investment Support Project (EU-MUTRAP) to tackle the aforementioned shortcomings, declared the ambassador.
The results also revealed that trade liberalisation and foreign investment have bolstered national economic modernisation, bringing about considerable improvements such as a big tariff reduction and the comprehensive renovation of services and the better enforcement of intellectual property rights.-VNA
Đăng ký: VietNam News