Boosting Vietnamese exporters to develop sustainably Foreign direct investment export businesses in Vietnam are contributing a great deal to national economic development. But the Vietnamese government still needs new policies to help domestic exporters to reduce dependence on the foreign invested sector.  Over the past 10 months, FDI enterprises earned more than US$100 billion from overseas exports, up 8% from last year, garnering more than 70% of Vietnam’s export revenue. This helped Vietnam record a trade surplus of US$3.52 billion over 10 months and reduced its trade gap. Economist Luu Bich Ho says domestic exporters should consider FDI a boost to growth that will eventually make them less dependent on FDI. “FDI plays an important role in Vietnam’s exports and industry. In the future, on one hand we’ll continue to attract more FDI, especially in the industrial and agricultural sectors. On the other hand we must try to encourage domestic companies to contribute more to production and exports”, Ho noted. It’s impossible to deny the benefits FDI has brought to the Vietnamese economy. But in the long run, Vietnam needs to lessen its dependence on FDI companies. Economist Nguyen Minh Phong advised Vietnamese enterprises to find ways to improve their competitiveness to meet the strict requirements of foreign partners and the current integration. “If we can make full use of FDI, that capital will help connect the national economy with the global supply chain. Regarding environmental pollution and labor disputes, state management agencies should refine the legal system to reduce risks and direct FDI flows and FDI activities to achieve set targets. In that way, we can reduce unsustainable pressure,” said Phong. Nguyen Van Toan, Vice President of the Vietnam Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises, said “It’s best if FDI companies which have been doing business for a long time in Vietnam and have wide spread influence can connect export value chains with Vietnamese businesses. On the other hand, if that link isn’t established, efforts to attract foreign investment in Vietnam will be meaningless.” VOV5