At a seminar in Hanoi on April 23, a number of domestic and overseas economic experts discussed the Vietnamese economy’s weaknesses and the positive impacts since the country became a member of the WTO.
The head of the European Commission’s (EC) delegation to Vietnam, Ambassador Sean Doyle, praised Vietnam’s efforts to take full advantage of its WTO membership.
While saying that the effects of Vietnam’s trade reforms since joining the WTO need more time to be correctly assessed, he pointed out the most important achievements that the country has made over the past two years, describing them as “the specific characteristics in Vietnam’s WTO story”.
According to Doyle, Vietnam has gained its trade partners’ confidence through the government’s policies, reforms and transparency in various fields. The completion of the country’s legal framework has also helped Vietnamese producers to become more confident in the international arena.
In addition, Vietnam has learned from experience how to apply WTO-ruled trade protection measures when addressing disputes in order to protect the legitimate interests of domestic businesses. The country has also resolutely opposed protectionism although several countries are planning to reintroduce protectionist measures to protect their domestic industries during the current on-going global economic crisis.
As a WTO member, Vietnam had the chance to contribute to the WTO’s rules and regulations when attending the Doha talks and will do in future international trade negotiations. The experience and capacity of Vietnam’s leaders and experts in international trade have helped to promote the country’s standing in the world.
The ambassador, however, pointed out the disadvantages that Vietnam’s economy faces.
The country’s complex administrative policy has resulted in low rates of FDI being implemented and the slow process of policy reform, particularly in services, has also hindered development. He suggested that customs rules and procedures should be made clearer as this would help to speed up trade.
However, the EC official also confirmed that the EU was committed to supporting Vietnam in the future, to ensure its success and development.
One of the EC’s programmes to support Vietnam is to help the country implement the third phase of the Multilateral Trade Assistance Project (MUTRAP) from August 2008 to June 2012.
The project’s overall objective is to assist the Southeast Asian country in implementing its national socio-economic development plans and a post-WTO action plan to enable sustainable economic growth and a reduction in poverty by integrating further into the global trading system./.