Đào Minh Chánh, deputy director of HCM City Department of Planning and Investment

HCM City authorities have pledged to improve the business climate and mitigate difficulties faced by businesses to revive the economy.

Đào Minh Chánh, deputy director of the city Department of Planning and Investment, speaks with Việt Nam News Agency about the support needed for firms to recover. 

What are the key solutions to help businesses recover post-pandemic?

HCM City is leading the country in economic recovery. Its economy showed signs of recovery in the first quarter of this year with estimated growth of 1.88 per cent year-on-year.

There was a deep decline in the third and fourth quarters of 2021 with minus 24.97 per cent and minus 11.64 per cent rates.

Almost all businesses have resumed activities and are very upbeat about future prospects thanks to the country having one of the world’s highest vaccination rates.

But they face a lot of challenges.

The department will focus on improving the investment climate to simplify processes and reduce the time taken for administrative procedures.

It is promoting administrative reform, especially related to investment procedures, thereby ensuring healthy competition and a safe, open, transparent, and convenient business environment.

Under its economic recovery programme the city will focus on helping businesses restore production and supply chains to pre-pandemic level by 2025.

Could you elaborate on administrative reforms to support businesses?

The department’s motto is to place businesses at the centre, and so it will build inter-connected systems to reduce the time taken to process documents and publicise the process and the identities of officials handling documents.

In 2022 the department will focus on online public services to simplify business and investment registration to help businesses cut costs.

It is committed to reducing the time needed to complete administrative procedures for investment by 30 per cent. 

It plans to organise online and offline trade promotions, concentrated promotion programmes and conferences that seek to link up goods suppliers and distributors in the city and other cities and provinces.

It will also strengthen the channels for processing investment and business registrations. 

Businesses constantly complain they don’t know where to look for help. What is your response to this? 

Though the HCM City government website has integrated information about enterprises from 30 relevant departments, it still admittedly does not meet the needs of businesses. 

It is important to build a single portal easily accessed by firms.

It is also vital to enhance co-ordination between departments for resolving the difficulties faced by businesses. 

The Steering Committee for Administrative Reform, Department of Planning and Investment, Department of Natural Resources and Environment and Department of Construction must co-ordinate to resolve issues related to investment projects. 

Small and medium-sized enterprises, which account for 98 per cent of enterprises in the city, are in dire need of support. What are the specific support measures for them?

The Department of Planning and Investment is developing a plan to support small and medium-sized enterprises and will soon submit it to the city People’s Committee for promulgation. 

Under the plan, the department will work with industry trade groups, district people’s committees and businesses to organise networking conferences and seminars based on the needs of small- and medium-sized enterprises.

It will also help business households convert into businesses and expand markets, both within the country and abroad.

It will work with credit institutions to help further reduce interest rates on loans given to enterprises.

Businesses can find a wide range of market access information at the ITPC website (https://itpc.hochiminhcity.gov.vn/home). — VNS