She added that Vietnam is working to improve the country’s competitive edges by developing infrastructure and financial systems, improving the quality of human resources and facilitating all economic sectors to economic growth, with a focus on the private economic sector. 

NA Chairwoman Ngan highlighted that the country is focusing on completing its legal framework for the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model in infrastructure development. She said Vietnam will soon announce a list of priority PPP projects and called on Singaporean investment funds and groups to invest in those projects. 

At the same time, the country is promoting start-up and connecting the domestic start-up ecology with the region and the world with the aim of creating the most favourable conditions for foreign investors, including those from Singapore, to invest in Vietnamese start-ups, she noted. 

Vietnam encourages Singaporean businesses to invest in the country through venture investment funds, share experience and connect Vietnamese firms with the global economy, the NA Chairwoman stressed. 

She noted that as part of its efforts to integrate into the world, Vietnam has signed 12 free trade agreements (FTAs) and is negotiating four new-generation agreements. As a result, the country has served as an important link of an economic network of 55 countries, including many members of the Group of 20 (G20) and the Group of Seven (G7), she said. 

 

VSIP – a big Singaporean investor in Vietnam

Douglas Foo, President of the Singaporean Manufacturing Federation (SMF) described Vietnam as an attractive destination to businesses from not only Singapore but other countries and territories in the region and the world. 

He singled out several fields with great potential for bilateral cooperation such as education-training, digital economy and e-commerce. Singaporean Minister of Trade and Industry Lim Hng Kiang said the Vietnamese Government’s growth-facilitating policies have helped raise confidence of foreign investors. 

The minister expressed his hope that Vietnamese and Singaporean businesses will have more opportunities to cooperate with each other following the dialogue. Singapore is Vietnam’s largest trade partner in ASEAN and the sixth largest in the world, with annual two-way trade revenue exceeding 7 billion USD. 

Singapore is also the third largest foreign investor in Vietnam, with the most noteworthy being the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP) chain which has been present in the country for more than 20 years. Besides, progress has also been made in bilateral cooperation in science-technology, tourism, culture, sports and education.