Economic recovery program remains a necessity in the new situation

	Improve capacity to create momentum for economic recovery after Covid-19
	Preparing financial resources for Economic Recovery Program
	Advising on the issuance of Government bonds and mobilizing capital for the economic recovery program

Mr. Phan Duc Hieu

Facing global changes, the country’s economy changed a lot compared to the time when Vietnam issued support and recovery policies (nearly three months ago), from the perspective of the issuing agency of the policies, is this program outdated?

This is a very important question. When we built the Program, we took into account other risk factors besides the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. The management agency has foreseen solutions, one of which is a harmonious combination of fiscal and monetary policies to cope with macroeconomic fluctuations.

The biggest impact on economic recovery that we have not yet counted is the Russia – Ukraine conflict, which causes supply chain disruptions and raises input production costs, threatening macroeconomic stability. This will impact Vietnam's economic recovery.

In that context, I think that the Program is not only not outdated but proves its necessity. Because the program is developed to help businesses that are affected by supply chain disruptions and increasing production costs, as well as labor difficulties. Therefore, the program has value and significance.

Should we adjust policies or issue support policies to cope with the new situation?

In my opinion, the content of the program does not need to be adjusted in the immediate future; the most important thing is implementation. What needs to be adjusted here is to harmonize monetary policies.

The Prime Minister is also drastic in the implementation of the program. Twenty days after the National Assembly adopted Resolution 43/2022/QH15 on fiscal and monetary policies, the Government issued a detailed program on economic recovery. And in the past two months, the Government has twice sent an urgent telegram to request the implementation.

Accordingly, some policies were implemented very early such as the policy on Value Added Tax (VAT).

In contrast, many current policies are still underway and waiting to be applied in practice.

The timely implementation of these policies greatly affects the progress and effectiveness of the economic recovery program and the resilience of businesses. Because for some policies, if some are not implemented in time, they will reduce or even lose their objectives.

For example, the policy on rental fee support for employees. This policy is developed to share difficulties for employees and encourage them to return work. If this policy is immediately implemented, it may bring huge benefits but if it is carried out late, it may share difficulties for employees but not attract them to return to work.

Or the computers and network program is as an example, if the program is not implemented quickly, it will reduce the efficiency of the program because the context has changed.

Besides, we should closely monitor the implementation of the policies to have timely adjustments. For example, the policy on VAT reduction is currently having a very good effect because it not only stimulates consumption but also reduces costs for businesses.

In addition, some businesses are worried about socio-economic recovery programs. They are afraid of wrongdoings, leading to a penalty. This is imposing pressure on businesses. Thus, it can be seen that when the policy is issued, the information, guidance and answering questions and method of implementation are very important.

Another point worth noting here is that the policy implementation must be fair, because if access is not equal among localities it will create a "distortion" in accessing resources, or a "distortion" in production activities.

Therefore, in the future, in addition to issuing policies, the actual implementation of these policies should be transparent, fair and accessible to meet the needs in the current context.

Some say that improving institutions and reducing conditions for accessing support packages are even more important and meaningful for businesses. What is your opinion on this matter?

We already have good policies, good infrastructure, but if the institution is bad (slow, difficult to access, unfair, etc.), it will have a great impact on efficiency. I hope that competent agencies will quickly conduct wide consultation to get opinions and prepare plans in order to avoid policy mistakes.

The implementation should have the participation of state agencies and social organizations and business associations at the same time.

Online seminar held on "Inflation Control and Economic recovery and development" VCN - On the afternoon of March 9, 2022, Customs News will organize an online seminar on ...

In addition, there should be a consensus of all levels, agencies and localities in program implementation to help businesses easily access support packages.

Thank you Sir!