Overseas Vietnamese investments important for development: official

Thao made this announcement on December 27 at a meeting held by the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese (SCOV) under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hanoi.

According to Thao, overseas Vietnamese have invested in 52 out of 62 provinces and cities in Vietnam. Also, they currently run about 3,600 businesses nationwide, with some 2,000 projects valued at a combined US$8.6 billion.

The projects concentrate in trading, tourism, construction and real estate fields, besides production of export goods, aquaculture and seafood processing. They bring in an average income of some $20 billion to the country annually.

Overseas Vietnamese enterprises and entrepreneurs have stakes in domestic banks, such as Techcombank and VPBank, and major property and tourism businesses, such as VinGroup and Sungroup.

They have also invested in large manufacturing companies, such as Eurowindow and Masan, as well as the waste processing firm Da Phuoc.

Vu Hong Nam, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the SCOV, said the global business community of overseas Vietnamese, which comprised more than 10,000 businesses in 2012, has significantly helped Vietnamese goods penetrate different markets throughout the world.

The community has formed distribution networks with many shopping centres and trade association, while many Vietnamese entrepreneurs have established economic groups and bridged trade and investment among numerous countries.

However, Hoang Manh Hue, who chairs the union of Vietnamese business associations across Europe, said overseas Vietnamese still faced obstacles related to investment procedures in Vietnam.

It has taken overseas Vietnamese three to four years to obtain investment licences, and six to seven years to have a clear site for building a factory, he added.

Nam said the SCOV will make greater efforts to assist overseas Vietnamese seeking to invest in enterprises and businessmen in Vietnam.

Bui Dinh Dung, General Secretary of the Association of Overseas Vietnamese Entrepreneurs, said the overseas community and domestic enterprises should take advantage of connections in seeking partners and customers, as well as developing the brand names of Vietnamese goods.

Further, Nguyen Van Than, acting Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, said the association will help foster cooperation between local and overseas businesses with investment and trade consultancies, as well as assistance in production, distribution and promotion phases.

Le Duy Thanh, Vice Chairman of the Vinh Phuc People's Committee, said he expected overseas Vietnamese to invest more in the northern Vinh Phuc Province, where the quality of human resources, administrative procedures and infrastructure had been improved to encourage investors.

Nguyen Gia Phuong, the director of the Hanoi's investment promotion centre, said municipal authorities had also been working to create a more attractive investment environment for overseas Vietnamese investors.

He said the capital prioritises attracting investments in such areas as infrastructure, hi-tech industrial zones, support industries, biological technology, as well as new materials, healthcare and education between today and 2020.

It also calls for investments in trade centres, hi-tech agricultural zone, tourism, entertainment and ecological urban complexes.

Deputy Minister Nam said the laws on nationality, land, housing, investment, enterprises, customs and taxes have all been revised, offering better conditions for investment and business activities to overseas Vietnamese.