HÀ NỘI – Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc pledged enhanced efforts to improve the business climate to attract more Japanese investment, aiming to birth a new era in economic co-operation between the two countries.

Phúc was speaking on Monday at an investment promotion forum held in Tokyo, Japan as part of his official visit to Japan from Sunday to Thursday, which drew the participation of 1,600 firms, including 200 from Việt Nam.

At the event, businesses from both sides signed investment agreements worth US$22 billion.

Phúc expressed hope that there would be a new wave of investment from Japan to Việt Nam.

He vowed efforts to enhance the competitiveness of the Vietnamese economy and hasten institutional reform to give opportunities to all economic sectors.

"We also commit to continuing to complete investment policies to ensure consistency, openness, transparency, predictability and convenience for investors," he emphasised.

Phúc said that there were opportunities to invest in Việt Nam for foreigners, given the country’s political, social and macro-economic stability as well as the Government’s efforts to create a favourable investment environment together with a dynamic economy.

Việt Nam is encouraging mergers and acquisitions combined with the privatisation of State-owned enterprises in areas such as transport, infrastructure, food, agriculture, telecommunications, trade, services, tourism and construction. “This is a huge opportunity for Japanese investors to become strategic partners of Vietnamese firms in sectors with rich growth potential,” Phúc stressed.

Việt Nam is focusing on improving legal frameworks and facilitating public-private partnerships in infrastructure development with flexible capital contribution ratios and mechanisms, Phúc said at the conference.

Phúc said that Việt Nam is also boosting start-ups and links to the global start-up ecosystem.

“Việt Nam welcomes Japanese investments which encourage technology transfer, enhance brand value, financial capacity and corporate finance as well as promote engagement into the global supply chain,” he added.

“We expect Japanese investment funds and corporations to expand in Việt Nam and pour capital into new projects in prioritised areas like infrastructure development, logistics, aviation services, healthcare, education, science and technology, biology, high-tech agriculture and part supplying industries.”

“I believe that the close relationship between Việt Nam and Japan will be the foundation for the development and prosperity of the two countries,” Phúc stressed.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lauded the Vietnamese Government’s efforts to improve the investment climate for Japanese investors, adding that Japan and Việt Nam work together to support Japanese investors in Việt Nam through improving infrastructure, the investment environment and human resource training.

After the conference, Phúc met with Japanese investors.

Earlier, the Prime Minister attended a roundtable with leading Japanese corporations in high technology, electronics, petrol and oil, finance and banking, trade and retail such as Canon, Panasonic, Nipro Corporation, Taisei Corp, Tokyo Gas, Idemitsu, Taiyo Nippon Sanso, Hitachi Zosen, Aeon, Fast Retail and Mitsubishi UFJ Leasing.

Phúc said that ideas from Japanese firms at the event would help the country devise measures to remove difficulties for firms and policies for economic development.

Phúc also urged Japanese firms to hasten the progress of their projects in Việt Nam.

In the morning, Phúc met with representatives of major Japanese enterprises and funds in Tokyo.

Speaking at the working session, Phucs said it was a good time for Japanese enterprises to invest in Việt Nam as the two countries had reached high-level agreements on boosting co-operation.

He said that Japan was the top supplier of official development assistance, the third largest source of tourist arrivals and the fourth largest trade partner of Việt Nam, and bilateral co-operative potential between the two remains huge. - VNS