After one-year access to WTO, Vietnam has had good implementation of multilateral commitments and market expansion commitments, creating a foothold on international market, being able to expand market for export goods, create a more favorable environment for foreign investment, technology transfer, official management and training skills as well as settle commercial disputes on a fair ground within WTO frame.
In implementing multilateral commitments, especially commitments related to state owned enterprises (SOEs) and state commercial enterprises, Vietnam has acted accordingly to commercial norms. State has had neither intervene in SOE’s operation directly or indirectly nor consider SOE’s purchases Government’s purchases. On non-agricultural subsidies, Vietnam committed to completely abolishing forbidden subsidies from the moment of WTO accession. Forbidden subsidies, excluding the ones on garment and textile, under the form of preferential investment for export goods which had already been issued prior to WTO entry will be maintained in five years since WTO accession. Besides, Mr Le Danh Vinh affirms that up to now, Vietnam has seriously conformed to commitments on agricultural subsidy. For subsidies required to be cut by WTO including interest support in collecting farm products and floor price setting for farm products, Vietnam has managed to keep such subsidies range around ten percent of product value.
In import tariff area, more than 1,800 tax categories have been cut under Decision No. 78/2006/QD-BTC dated December 29th 2006 which was promulgated by Minister of Finance (mainly tariff categories related to garment & textile products and vegetable & fruit products). In import tariff, tariffs on such products as cars transporting passenger and milk have been cut even before deadlines. Import tariff on garment & textile goods has been reduced to 13.7 percent from 37.3 percent. Vietnam has carried out serious implementation. Referring to solutions to tackle potential influences on society when Vietnam joins WTO, economics experts attach great importance to solutions related to social welfare, education, training and human resource development, especially for workers in rural areas so that they can have appoach to better jobs. As such, an appropriate finance mechanism is crucial for education and training, including the improvement of microfinance mechanism in support for poor population group.
Currently, there are a significant number of foreign enterprises rushing to Vietnam for business. Vietnam has paid more attention to such issues as international law, lawyer hiring for consultation on commitments Vietnam has to abide by after WTO entry and preferential tax which enterprises are entitled to. However, together with opportunities brought by WTO, Vietnam enterprises are supposed to cope with quite a few commercial disputes. There has been a significant increase in the number of such disputes over the past one year, which really poses challenges to Vietnam enterprises.
Up to now, Vietnam enterprises have had awareness of the importance of brand name, thus, had development plans and strategies. Furthermore, brand new competition has forced enterprises to focus all their resources on creating competitive advantages in the market.
Hong Hanh
Vietnamese
