Entrepreneurs indifferent to integration
The results of a study on "Vietnamese businesspeople's awareness of integration" were released by the PACE Institute of Management in HCM City on December 29.
They reveal that Vietnamese entrepreneurs pay little heed to the country's integration into the global economic community, with 56.8% of those polled ignoring/knowing very little about the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), 40.9% ignoring the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and 33.4% knowing very little about the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Of the respondents, 85.5 do not know about AEC provisions, while for the TPP and WTO the numbers are 77.8% and 66.3%.
But most are fully aware of the economic benefits of integrating with the global community.
The media is considered among the major influences on businesspeople's awareness of integration, with 74.8% saying they know from the internet, 64 from the print media, 54 from TVs, and 50.6% from radio.
The study comes at a time when Vietnam has concluded negotiations for the TPP and preparations for the AEC, which comes into being on December 31 this year.
The two are economic events that will have a huge impact on Vietnam's economy, according to a press release from PACE.
It is the first study in the country to take a comprehensive look at businesspeople's awareness of integration.
It polled 493 entrepreneurs mostly in southern cities and provinces, especially HCM City, considered the locomotive driving the country's economic growth.