HÀ NỘI — Government policies must be business-friendly to encourage investment, Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyễn Chí Dũng said at a dialogue on the 2016 investment policy on Tuesday.

Dũng said the development of the legal system aims to inspire an environment of support and openness for corporations.

“Only when firms see the support and consistency of the government’s policies will they feel confident about spending their money here,” Dũng said at the dialogue co-organised by Việt Nam’s Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises (VAFIE) and KPMG Việt Nam. “The Government wants to hear more opinions from business leaders in order to create appropriate policies.”

The Government is taking drastic steps to improve the business and investment climate in line with Resolutions 19 and 35, Dũng said.

With the Vietnamese economy stable in the first half of this year, but still in need of firm ground for growth, Dũng said the role of the business community was of great importance.

In the remaining months of this year, Dũng urged businesses to be more dynamic in helping drive the economy forward. Businesses must enhance co-operation to help each other overcome difficulties.

“Competition should not be about winning or losing, but about improving,” Dũng said.

Increasing labour productivity is of key importance to Việt Nam’s development and for avoiding the mid-income trap, Dũng said.

Dũng said business must adapt to the rapidly changing and integrating world markets and prepare to grasp opportunities as they arise.

Quách Ngọc Tuấn, deputy director of the ministry’s legal department, said business should be more proactive in offering their opinions on draft laws in order to improve the business climate.

Warrick Cleine, Chairman and CEO of KPMG in Việt Nam, said the Government should enhance efforts to open up the economy.

Chairman of VAFIE, Nguyễn Mại, said policies to promote the development of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are needed. Mại said tax incentives would help SMEs accumulate capital for investment and technological innovation.

Dũng said it was important to promote the development of Vietnamese firms now in order to keep up with the dynamics of the foreign direct investment (FDI) sector.

Stressing the role of FDI enterprises, Dũng said they were critical for the development of Việt Nam’s parts supply industry.

Dũng said he expects foreign-invested firms to create conditions for domestic firms to participate in their supply chain. “Local firms cannot develop the parts supply industry alone,” Dũng said.

Statistics of the Foreign Investment Agency show that Việt Nam attracted more than US$11.2 billion worth of FDI in the first half of this year. — VNS