Vice-Chairman and General Secretary of the Việt Nam Association of Small and Medium Enterprises Tô Hoài Nam. Photo haiquanonline.com.vn

 
Vice-Chairman and General Secretary of the Việt Nam Association of Small and Medium Enterprises Tô Hoài Nam spoke to Hải quan (Customs) newspaper about the Government’s support policies for enterprises impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic

What do you think about the Government’s policies to support businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Not only the Government’s support packages but also its directions are important and urgent to help enterprises overcome difficulties in business and production at this time. Support packages in terms of interest rates, credit, taxes, fees and social insurance are all very reasonable and fit the current situation, economic context and enterprises’ conditions when COVID-19 has brought us difficulties.

I particularly appreciate the solutions relating to taxes and fees. The reduction of taxes/fees and a tax break or tax postponement helps reduce the pressure of cost, law compliance and finance for enterprises so they can concentrate their resources on surviving and developing during this COVID-19 crisis.

There are enterprises complaining that they find it difficult to access the Government’s supports or that the support is not effective. What do you think about this?

In my opinion, until now, there is not enough evidence to say that enterprises are facing difficulties accessing the Government’s support. First of all, such support policies are very new, and some of them are even unprecedented, so it takes time to be translated into reality. Secondly, it should be mentioned that some enterprises always complain. So, it’s too soon to confirm how difficult it is for enterprises to access support packages. More time is needed for enterprises to learn about and understand the support, so we can assess their effectiveness.

What should State management agencies do to help enterprises understand and make use of the support packages?

For any support policies, State management agencies should have guidance and commitments to help enterprises understand how they will be supported and where to go to get the support.

This means transparency and fairness are necessary. State agencies must provide enterprises with needed information and create favourable conditions for enterprises to access the information. Administrative procedures must be processed quickly so enterprises can get supported fast.

Because the support policies are new, it’s likely that implementing the policies will require time and caution. During this tough time, all parties need to try their best to help enterprises overcome difficulties, which will help revive the national economy.

What should enterprises do to make use of the policies?

Of course, during this time when enterprises face difficulties, they must be more active to learn new policies and seek help from functional agencies, for example, credit, insurance or tax institutions to get consultation and support. Then, enterprises must strictly meet requirements, ensure transparency and co-operate with agencies so the support packages can be implemented effectively. VNS