Looking back on the efforts and achievements the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) has made in the fifth term (2009 - 2013) and learning about the expectations VCCI sets for the sixth term, Vietnam Business Forum interviews Mr Ho Quynh Hung, Member of the VCCI Executive Board of the fifth tenure, and Board Chairman and CEO of Dien Quang Lamp Joint Stock Company. An An reports.
As a member of the VCCI Executive Board of the fifth tenure, how do you assess the outcomes the board set for the fifth term? How has VCCI implemented Resolution 09-NQ/TW of the Politburo on entrepreneur force development?
During the past term, the VCCI Executive Board has made a lot of effort, closely overseen the implementation of objectives set by the fifth congress. Particularly, VCCI has excellently carried out the Resolution 09-NQ/TW of the Politburo on building and promoting the role of Vietnamese entrepreneurs in the process of industrialisation, modernisation and international integration. Many specific programmes and activities with rich and diverse contents have been organised by VCCI in order to concretise the implementation of the Resolution like criticising, building and popularising policies, especially policies on administrative reform and business environment improvement; promoting trade, investment, training and support for enterprises business to integrate into the world economy; and organising meetings for authorities and businesspeople and proposing solutions to support enterprises to deal with difficulties to continue development.
The Vietnamese economy remains in difficulty and businesses still face a plenty of pressures, especially hot issues like labour relations, wages and inventory clearance. So, what are the expectations of business support set by the sixth Congress?
As the economy is now in much difficulty, Dien Quang hopes that the upcoming sixth VCCI’s Congress will place the priority of “accompanying and sharing" with enterprises as well as perform its roles of connecting, assembling and supporting the Vietnamese business community to overcome difficulties and strive to sustainable development. VCCI should also host more activities in collaboration with business associations and industry entities nationwide to improve the quality and operational efficiency of VCCI in both breadth and depth. VCCI needs to excellently criticise, timely recommend and advice State authorities on policymaking and enforcement as well as mechanisms and measures for improving the capacity and efficiency of production and business activities. Specially, VCCI needs to place priority, support and incentives for the industries Vietnam has strengths and potentials for sustainable development, key industries, environment-friendly industries, supporting industries, and national key products.
VCCI will facilitate businesses to contribute ideas, access full information about State policies and regulations in a timely manner, access information about new science, technology and technical standards in the country and in the world while organising trade and investment promotion activities to direct enterprises to make suitable business strategies to catch up with development trends, improve competitiveness and enhance international economic integration. Notably, VCCI needs to cooperate with business associations to establish an inside market for member companies only while formulating mechanisms and policies to encourage members to use each other's products and services.
VCCI needs to protect legitimate rights and interests of Vietnamese businesses in the context of increasingly fierce competition, caused by international economic integration, with defensive and safeguard measures, anti-dumping, trade dispute, intellectual property protection, and technical standard barriers before bilateral and multilateral trade agreements begin to take effect.
VCCI has difficulty performing its tasks when its operating budgets are slashed and many major business support projects and programmes are slowly carried out on lack of resources. What solutions will VCCI need to solve this problem?
Amid above-mentioned difficult conditions, to have sufficient resources for deploying its programmes and activities, VCCI can effectively harness and utilise huge internal resources from the business community. The agency also needs to seek aids from international organisations based on its pro-community criteria like generating employment and raising incomes low -income people, supporting small and medium businesses and protect the environment. In addition, VCCI has incomes from training programmes, trade fairs, exhibitions or and acts as a middleman for domestic and foreign companies to promote trade and discuss investment cooperation opportunities.
As an owner of a rapid and sustainable developing business, would you mind revealing this success of Dien Quang?
In tough times, like other companies, Dien Quang also met with hardships. But with its rich experience, the company worked out coherent long-term development policy, focused on illuminating industry, and had clearly defined corporate culture built on three criteria, namely creativity - generosity - responsibility, to take the lead in the lighting industry. Dien Quang always self-refreshes with many new products such as LED lights, compact lamps and specially Double Wing lights - durable, energy-saving, easy-to-use, and high-efficient products. This is the key to the success of Dien Quang.
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