How can Vietnam become the success story of Economic Integration?

According to Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, Viet Nam has earned great achievements of
historical significance after 35 years of Doi Moi and 25 years of international integration since
joining ASEAN. With increasingly affirmed international position and prestige, our country
entered the stage of participating in international economic linkage with a completely new state
of mind.specially in promoting the implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community
(AEC).
Through international economic integration, it has created opportunities for Vietnam to access
the achievements of science and technology in the world, step by step bringing the activities of
enterprises and the economy into the competitive environment. . Vietnamese enterprises have the
opportunity to receive a lot of experiences in modern production management through joint
venture projects with foreign partners. Many modern technologies, advanced production lines are
used to create new developments in the manufacturing industry. International economic
integration forces Vietnamese enterprises to compete in both domestic and foreign markets.
Therefore, enterprises must constantly innovate their technology, improve management
efficiency, improve productivity and quality, focus on branding to survive and develop. At
present, many items of our country are evaluated as competitive in the international market.
Some companies have invested overseas such as Viettel, PetroVietnam, Hoang Anh Gia Lai,
Trung Nguyen Legend Coffee, Vinamilk, etc. The overseas markets are Laos, Russia, Singapore,
Cambodia, UK, Taiwan.
In line with the trend of establishing free trade areas in the world, Vietnam has established
diplomatic relations with more than 170 countries in the world, expanding trade and exports to
over 230 markets of countries and territories, signed on 90 bilateral trade agreements, nearly 60
agreements on investment promotion and protection, 54 agreements on double taxation, 12 trade
agreements By (FTA) with 56 countries and economies in the world, of which 6 FTAs are
actively participating outside of ASEAN framework or with ASEAN partner countries and many
cultural cooperation agreements. The Government attaches great importance to financial and
banking reforms. Achievements in this respect have helped maintain macroeconomic stability,
reduce the budget deficit, control inflation, improve transparency of public finances, remove
subsidies through the credit system, introduce interest and exchange rates in accordance with
demand and supply in the market and increase the effectiveness of fund raising and use. For the
first time, various markets such as a stock market, financial market, labor market and real estate
market have been formed in Vietnam.
Over time, Vietnam has achieved many achievements in integration, it has become a country
with high position in the region and it has participated in all major international organizations
such as the United Nations; WTO; ASEAN, ASEM, and APEC, and signs bilateral free trade
agreements with partners in the region and in the world. The process of international integration,
first and foremost international economic integration in recent years, has enabled Vietnam to
effectively attract all three major international resources: Official Development Assistance
(ODA) foreign direct investment (FDI) and remittances. Participating in international integration,
import-export activities of Vietnam has been developing strongly, constantly growing in both
size and speed.
In fact, the EU is one of Vietnam's most important trading partners. During the 2001-2008
period, Vietnam's exports to the EU grew steadily at an average annual rate of 16%.
In 2021 and the first months of 2022, two-way trade between Vietnam and the EU continues to
recover and grow very strongly, even compared to the pre-pandemic period. According to
calculations from the General Department of Customs, in the second year of EVFTA
implementation (from August 2021 to July 2022), the total import-export turnover reached 61.4
billion USD, up 11.9%. compared with the first year the agreement took effect, in which, exports
reached 45 billion USD, up 17% and import reached 16.4 billion USD, up slightly by 0.2%.
Notably, in the past 8 months, Vietnam's goods exports to most markets in the EU have recorded
good growth and witnessed a positive shift, not only focusing on large markets, but also not only
focusing on large markets but also in the EU. EU gateway such as Germany, Netherlands,
France... but also have good access to smaller markets such as in Northern Europe, Eastern
Europe or Southern Europe.
The structure of exports to the EU also tends to expand and diversify, as not only key
commodities have achieved impressive growth rates, such as machinery and equipment (up
34.8%), textiles and garments. garment (41.2%), footwear (36.2%),... but the export turnover of
many agricultural, forestry and fishery products is also increasing at a very high rate, notably
coffee (up 54, 4%), seafood (up by nearly 42%), vegetables (18%), pepper (25%), rice (22.2%)
…

In terms of benefits to Vietnam directly, the EVFTA is the largest new-generation free
trade agreement in the history of the nation.
In the long term, trade facilitation is a game changer, and Vietnam should turn the COVID-19
challenges into an opportunity to stimulate appropriate reforms. Key policy actions are
appropriate and include:
i. Applying risk-based management for managing volunteer compliance and shifting to post-
clearance inspections
ii. Applying information technology in inspections of export and import goods and transits,
ensuring uniform information connection between state management agencies (specialized
inspection units and the General Department of Customs)
iii. Effectively implementing the National Single Window and the ASEAN Single Window
iv. Promoting transparency in all specialized inspection agencies by issuing a
product list with Harmonized System (HS) codes assigned for specialized inspection goods
v. Reducing logistics costs by reducing toll fees and digitalizing their collection, rationalizing
trade-related transport and logistics infrastructure toward betterconnecting value chains, and
promoting multimodality.
An effective mechanism to handle and supervise the implementation of appropriate formulated
policies should be in place to improve interagency coordination for trade facilitation and global
integration.
What are the strategies that Vietnam have to use in this volatile markets?
Since we are still witnessing complicated global and regional situations, opportunities and
challenges are intertwined. The foreign minister of Viet Nam stated that it is essential to
concentrate on the following axes in order to maximize the benefits of and further promote the
successes of global economic integration while increasing Viet Nam's level of participation,
contribution, and position:
Firstly, we need to put priority on the effective implementation of commitments in FTAs and
economic cooperation mechanisms, of which we are a member. The implementation of
commitments in the volatile and fiercely competitive international environment puts us in front
of many new and complex issues such as trade, investment, technology disputes, issues related to
labor, the environment, etc. They require us to firmly grasp international and domestic
regulations and coordinate synchronously among all levels and sectors to handle them
appropriately and effectively.
Secondly, we should continue to improve and expand our network and our economic integration
bilaterally and multilaterally with partners and organizations around the world, bringing Viet
Nam into the center of global economic linkages. However, we need to be consistent with the
foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, cooperation and development,
diversification and multilateralization of foreign relations.
Thirdly, it is necessary to actively participate in the process of shaping the regional structure,
building economic governance frameworks and regulations at regional, inter-regional and global
levels. Also, Viet Nam needs to make effective and responsible contributions to solve common
problems, especially ensuring a free, open and rules-based multilateral trading system, reforming
the WTO, and promoting sustainable and inclusive development, etc.
It is also necessary to actively participate in the development of international frameworks and
regulations on digital economic governance and digital transformation, on the basis of suitability
with our interests; continue to effectively implement the policy of "participating in shaping
multilateral institutions" and Directive No. 25 of the Party Central Committee's Secretariat on
promoting and elevating multilateral diplomacy.
Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son emphasized: “In the new era of strategy, under the leadership of
the Party and the State, the diplomatic sector will continue to promote its pioneering role in
creating a peaceful and favorable environment for the Vietnamese people. Economic diplomacy
for national development will continue to be an important task of the sector.