Vietnam Proactively and Decisively Prepared for a Strategic ”Game"

The transformation of foreign investment in Vietnam has seen a significant shift in "quality". This is the sweet fruit of a 35-year-long journey of effort, especially in the last 5 years, when Vietnam proactively and decisively prepared for a strategic "game."

"The battle" at the eagle's nest

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung has just returned to Vietnam after a working trip to South Korea. After accompanying Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on an official visit to Japan, he flew directly to South Korea to visit and work with the Samsung Group at Samsung Digital City, as well as to visit production facilities for chips, liquid hydrogen, and LNG power plants of the SK Group...

These are two major groups with significant investments in Vietnam, but perhaps the Minister's aspirations are even greater. He wants Samsung to continue supporting Vietnam in enhancing the capabilities of domestic enterprises and hopes SK will support and continue to invest in semiconductor and hydrogen-related fields.

In recent years, Minister Nguyen Chi Dung has consistently gone straight to the "eagle's nest" to promote investment. "Countries are competing fiercely. Therefore, to attract the shifting investment flow, we must 'battle' with each investor, each project, change the way of promoting investment to urge and push them to make investment decisions early, or else we will lose opportunities," the Minister has often said.

Not only Minister Nguyen Chi Dung, but during overseas trips, the country's leaders also always "seize the opportunity" to meet, exchange, and call on foreign investors to invest in Vietnam. "In the current fierce competition for investment attraction, we must reach the 'eagle's nest' of investors to 'lure' them to Vietnam," said Nguyen Dinh Cung, former Head of the Central Institute for Economic Management.

The efforts, determination, and goodwill of Vietnam have gained the trust of investors. "We chose Vietnam because of the strong commitments of the Government to sustainable development, as well as Vietnam's excellent trade relations and international integration," said Niels B. Christiansen, CEO of LEGO.

The $1.3 billion project of LEGO in Vietnam was successfully invested, thanks to direct connections and the support in finding investment locations from the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister. Direct phone calls between government leaders and LEGO's CEO took place. At the COP26 conference in the UK, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh had a meeting with the company's leadership to "push things forward." Subsequently, an agreement was signed, and the project is now being implemented, with the first products expected to be available by the end of next year.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, when borders were tightly closed, and flights were suspended, the "battles" with the "eagle" were conducted with the support of technology. Continuous online meetings were organized, involving major corporations such as Apple, SK, and semiconductor giants.

The $1.6 billion semiconductor project of Amkor, as recounted by Do Nhat Hoang, Director of the Foreign Investment Agency (Ministry of Planning and Investment), "came to life" during those years. In August 2021, Amkor sent a letter to Vietnamese authorities requesting favorable conditions for their senior experts to work. With the support of the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Amkor delegation obtained visas to come to Vietnam to explore investment opportunities, discuss, and sign agreements for the project in Bac Ninh. Just two years later, the Amkor plant was operational.

The "battle" at the "eagle's nest" was successful.

Strategic shift

To achieve these successes, it is worth mentioning that in August 2019, nearly a year after the Government organized the Conference summarizing 30 years of attracting foreign investment, the Politburo issued a separate resolution on perfecting the system, policies, and improving the quality and efficiency of foreign investment cooperation by 2030 - Resolution 50-NQ/TW.

Up until now, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Mai, Chairman of the Association of Foreign Investment Enterprises, still refers to the Vietnam Investment Forum, organized in 1991 under the leadership of General Secretary Nguyen Van Linh. At that time, General Secretary Nguyen Van Linh conveyed a clear message to the international investor community that Vietnam advocates expanding economic cooperation in all fields and under all forms, in line with the characteristics of the modern economic globalization process...

The conference and the message of General Secretary Nguyen Van Linh had a significant impact on the foreign investor community. Therefore, despite the Foreign Investment Law being issued in December 1987, it was only after the Vietnam Investment Forum was organized that significant waves of foreign investment truly flowed into Vietnam.

The issuance of Resolution 50-NQ/TW by the Politburo, according to Prof. Dr. Nguyen Mai, has a similar significance to the investment forum of that time. The resolution sent a very clear message to investors about a new era, the era of "foreign investment cooperation," and laid the groundwork for Vietnam to attract higher-quality, more effective investment, focusing on high technology, source technology, with widespread effects on the Vietnamese economy and society, targeting large corporations, especially those from Europe and America...

In mid-2022, the Government issued the Foreign Investment Cooperation Strategy for the 2021-2030 period, to specifically implement and realize the goals set out in Resolution 50-NQ/TW. According to Minister Nguyen Chi Dung, this transition is strategic in nature.

Resolution 50-NQ/TW not only outlines Vietnam's strategic goals in foreign investment cooperation but also breakthrough solutions to implement that strategy. Criteria for selecting and evaluating foreign investment projects are also developed to create a "filter" to bring quality projects to Vietnam while optimizing investment efficiency.

Incentive policies are also "tailored" for investors. Therefore, between two important resolutions, special investment incentive policies were issued in October 2021. "The government's decision is correct and timely to compete for investment attraction with other countries in the region," said Nguyen Dinh Nam, founder and CEO of Vietnam Investment and Cooperation Promotion Company (IPA Vietnam).

Although now, with the global minimum tax applied in some countries from 2024, special incentive policies may not have much significance, at the time this policy was issued, a major foreign investor affirmed that it was something they had "been waiting for a long time."

The policy effect is evident because afterward, Samsung, LG continued to pour capital, Apple came, and Amkor stayed...

Overcoming the "trough"

Just over a month ago, Apple's manufacturer Luxshare - ICT decided to inject an additional $330 million to increase its total investment capital for its electronic component manufacturing plant to $504 million. Again, Bac Giang received that project.

Bac Giang has emerged as a preferred destination for many investors when shifting production to Vietnam in recent years. Not only Luxshare but also Foxconn, Hana Micron, etc., have concentrated their Apple production facilities here. In just the past 11 months, over $2.7 billion of registered capital has flowed into this province. Recently, Bac Giang signed a memorandum of understanding for AEON to invest in a shopping center in the province, with a scale of $250 million.

Having a convenient location, close to Hanoi, near Bac Ninh is not enough. To achieve today's results, Bac Giang has made significant efforts to improve the investment environment. "Bac Giang always welcomes and commits to creating the most favorable conditions, accompanying and supporting investors in administrative procedures, resolving difficulties and obstacles from the investment survey phase to the entire production and business process in the province," said Le Anh Duong, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee.

To attract investment, Bac Giang also takes the lead in building provincial-level planning. This is the first locality in the country to be approved by the Government for the 2021-2030 planning period, with a vision to 2050. "They promote early action to take advantage of attracting the shifting investment flow," said Tran Quoc Phuong, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment - who has participated in the appraisal of many local plans.

With such preparation, Bac Giang has now become the focus of investors. Ngh? An is also in the same situation. Formerly always in the "trough" in attracting foreign investment, now it has risen to become a bright spot. In 2023, Ngh? An attracted over $1 billion in foreign direct investment, the highest ever. Many technology giants have also come here, such as Goertek, Luxshare - ICT, Foxconn, Runergy...

This makes Nguyen Duc Trung, Chairman of Ngh? An Provincial People's Committee, very pleased. He said that achieving these results is thanks to Ngh? An being "5 ready": ready for planning, ready for essential infrastructure, ready for investment land, ready for human resources, and ready to improve administrative procedures and the investment environment...

When everyone makes an effort and actively prepares, when all localities are ready, then it is the time when Vietnam can participate in strategic "games" and be ready to "take off."

(To be continued)

Source: Báo ??u T? Online (Dec, 2023)