Minister Dung was speaking at a high-level meeting of a joint committee to evaluate the final results of the seventh phase of the Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative, held in Hanoi on December 12.
Investment in industrial parks with adequate infrastructure, which are dedicated to Japanese firms, will help lower their operational costs and make it easier for them to utilize high-quality human resources and input materials, he stated.
He advised Japanese firms not to invest in every field, which could lead to wasted time and increase their costs without producing satisfactory results.
The seventh phase of the Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative started on August 2018 and finished this month. According to the joint committee, all 52 categories in the action plan for this phase have been well executed or are still in progress.
Among them, eight categories are behind schedule as they involve regulations affecting foreign investors, as stipulated in the Investment Law, the Enterprise Law, the Land Law and other laws on investment and business.
Also, the reforms of State-owned enterprises and of the stock market and the completion of regulations on the construction of gas pipelines in urban and suburban areas are creating delays.
One of the main reasons for delays is that Japanese officials need more time to provide documentation and collect enough information for Vietnamese agencies.
The two sides agreed in principle to start the eighth phase of the Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative.
This phase targets macro issues associated with major feasible policy recommendations, helping improve Vietnam’s investment environment and attract more Japanese investors to the country.
PM praises contributions by Japan-Vietnam Economic Committee
The impressive results of cooperation in trade and investment between Vietnam and Japan in recent years saw many contributions from the Japan-Vietnam Economic Committee, under the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), stated Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc at a meeting with a Keidanren delegation in Hanoi on December 12.
PM Phuc also hailed the role of the co-chairmen in the Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative, which addressed many issues, reported the Vietnam News Agency.
The PM hoped Japanese investors would rise to the top in Vietnam and that bilateral cooperation within the framework of the initiative would be raised to new heights by addressing recommendations made by Japanese investors and improving State management.
He added that the Government continues to offer support to Japanese investors, pointing out that the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment will collaborate with Vietnamese ministries and agencies and the Japanese side to execute the initiative in the next phase.
The co-chairmen said the two countries have actively carried out cooperative activities, notably the establishment of the Japanese Consulate General in the central coastal city of Danang in January 2020.
They stated that Vietnam has seen strong economic development with sociopolitical stability and has a large and young population.
The country also serves as a gateway for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and plays an important role in the production and value chains of Japanese firms. The investment environment in Vietnam has been significantly improved, they added.
The co-chairmen suggested the Vietnamese Government consider the priority order of projects based on its public debt ceiling to cooperate with Japanese partners in infrastructure development in Vietnam.
