Vietnam Targets US$7Bln FDI Next Year

Vietnam has set an ambitious goal to attract around US$7 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2007, which will require significant efforts of relevant government bodies and local authorities, the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) said.

 

Of the sum, around US$5-6 billion is expected to come from fresh projects, and the rest will be the capital increase of the existing ones.  ccording to the ministry, FDI disbursement will also reach between $4.2-4.5 billion next year, 24 per cent more than the 2006’s expectation.

 

Several large projects worth billions of US dollars are waiting for the ministry’s approval, which is expected to make the country’s target within its reach, said director of the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the MPI Phan Huu Thang.

 

“Facing a harsh competition from countries in the region in luring FDI, the MPI, provinces and cities nationwide have been approaching potential investors to look at Vietnam,” Thang said, adding that Japan, the US, Europe, South Korea and Singapore are considered key investors for the country.

 

Experts also expect the Common Investment Law, which came into effect at the beginning of July, will help to spur the FDI into Vietnam for its commitments to offer an equal playing field for foreign firms.

 

Besides, the country’s upcoming accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) will also pay the way for its extremely bright FDI picture in the coming time. In a bid to attract more foreign investors, the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and relevant authorities are planning to launch a series of promotion programs abroad from now to the end of the year.

 

Notability, it is seeking the Government’s nod to set up investment promotion representative offices in some key markets namely Japan, US, and the EU. In November, on the occasion of the APEC Summit, a big investment forum will be launched. It is expected to attract 800 big groups worldwide and 200 Vietnamese enterprises.