HCMC – The Government should revise the local economy’s growth target for 2020, as well as for the 2016-2020 period, and submit them to the National Assembly (NA) for consideration and approval, said a top official.
The NA Standing Committee held a meeting on May 15 to gather feedback for a Government report reviewing the implementation of the 2019 socioeconomic development plan and rolling out this year’s plan, as part of preparation for the upcoming ninth NA sitting, which is scheduled for opening on May 20.
Speaking at the event, Vu Hong Thanh, head of the NA Economic Committee, stated that the Government needs to actively map out short- and long-term scenarios for developing Vietnam’s social economy.
Also, the Government has to work out specific measures in directing the relevant agencies to meet the country’s growth target, he said.
In response, NA chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan said the country’s growth rate is projected at 6.8% this year. Due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the target needs to be reviewed, but the adjustment must be presented to the Party Central Committee for approval.
Wrapping up the meeting, NA vice chairman Phung Quoc Hien announced the NA Standing Committee’s decision that the legal foundation to seek the NA’s approval for revising the growth target was not sufficient.
The Government should continue to work on the 2020 socioeconomic growth plan and develop a third scenario containing measures to enact if the pandemic continues into 2021, as Covid-19 vaccines are not yet available, Hien added.
Earlier at the meeting, Nguyen Chi Dung, Minister of Planning and Investment, presented the report on behalf of the Government, with two scenarios planned to fuel economic growth.
Under the first plan, Vietnam has contained the epidemic since the second half of April and countries that are Vietnam’s major trade partners and investors resume regular trading activities in the third quarter of the year. The 2020 GDP growth is then expected to rise some 4.4% to 5.2% year-on-year.
As for the second scenario, trading activities with key partners will be back to normal by the final quarter, with GDP growth expected to expand 3.6%-4.4% versus the year-ago figure.
