HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng on Wednesday urged Chinese businesses to step up investment in Việt Nam with higher quality, more advanced technologies and greater spillover effects, while strengthening links with Vietnamese companies.

The Prime Minister was speaking at a meeting with Chinese businesses investing in Việt Nam, with discussions focusing on investment and cooperation in six key sectors -processing and manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, high-tech agriculture, telecommunications and digital transformation and finance and banking.

At the meeting, Chinese businesses openly shared information about their investment, production and business activities, while highlighting difficulties and obstacles and proposing solutions to the Government, ministries and local authorities.

The companies spoke highly of Việt Nam’s improving investment and business environment, particularly streamlined procedures and clearer responsibilities following the restructuring of the state apparatus. They said that Việt Nam is becoming an increasingly important market and shared plans to expand investment and pursue new cooperation opportunities and projects.

According to reports presented at the meeting, two-way trade reached about US$184.3 billion in the first seven months of this year, up 35.1 per cent year-on-year. Chinese investors registered nearly $3.7 billion in investment capital in Việt Nam during the period, with China ranking first in the number of newly-registered projects at around 850.

By the end of July, more than 7,000 Chinese-invested projects remained valid in Việt Nam, with total registered capital of nearly $37 billion. Investment has increasingly focused on processing and manufacturing, infrastructure, energy, electronics and technology.

PM Hưng said the two economies have significant potential for cooperation thanks to their complementary strengths. He stressed that the next phase of bilateral economic ties should focus not simply on more investment, but on investment that is better, higher quality and more effective and substantive.

He called on Chinese companies to continue viewing Việt Nam as a long-term investment and business destination, and to step up investment with higher quality, more advanced technologies and greater spillover effects.

The Government leader urged Chinese companies to closely follow the major cooperation priorities agreed by the two countries’ leaders and translate them into concrete projects, particularly in strategic infrastructure connectivity, including railway links between Việt Nam and China, urban railways, logistics and smart border gates; clean energy; advanced processing and manufacturing; and emerging fields such as the digital economy, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, 5G and big data.

Chinese businesses were also encouraged to strengthen research and development and innovation, expand links with Vietnamese companies, enable local firms to participate in supply chains, increase localisation, and ensure effective technology transfer and workforce training.

The Prime Minister emphasised that future investment should meet green and sustainable standards and be based on a long-term vision, while respecting workers’ legitimate rights and interests and fulfilling corporate social responsibilities.

“Every project must be beneficial to investors while also contributing to Việt Nam’s production capacity, technology, employment, State budget revenues and the development of Vietnamese businesses,” the Prime Minister said.

For major projects, he called for investors to bring advanced technologies, management experience and internationally competitive solutions, creating high-quality and efficient works and products that could become new landmarks in bilateral economic cooperation.

The PM also agreed in principle with and gave specific instructions on addressing 44 proposals and recommendations raised by Chinese businesses across the six sectors.

He said Việt Nam is accelerating institutional reforms, improving the investment and business environment and simplifying administrative procedures. In particular, the Government is streamlining procedures through the National Public Service Portal, so that businesses and investors do not have to provide information or data already available to the authorities.

Regulations are to be public, transparent, easy to understand and easy to comply with, reducing compliance time and costs for businesses, including foreign-invested enterprises.

The Prime Minister said he had instructed the Minister of Finance to establish a mechanism to receive and resolve businesses’ difficulties and recommendations as quickly as possible. Ministries and local authorities must proactively guide businesses on regulations, address their difficulties and recommendations effectively and comprehensively, and provide clear responses.

The Government will continue to listen to investors, work alongside businesses and protect their lawful and legitimate rights and interests, PM Hưng said, emphasising its commitment to creating favourable conditions for Chinese companies to invest and operate successfully and sustainably.

He expressed his hope that Chinese businesses would continue to expand their presence with greater confidence, a longer-term vision and higher-quality, more efficient projects with stronger spillover effects. — VNS