TOKYO-- May 08, 2023 -- The Government of Vietnam reaffirmed its reliance on a renewed productivity agenda and strategies to expand and sustain the bases of its economic growth trajectory. In an exchange of ideas with APO Secretary-General Dr. Indra Pradana Singawinata in Hanoi on 26 April 2023, Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh underlined the urgency of boosting labor productivity performance in materializing Vietnam’s aspiration to become a high-income country by 2045.

Prime Minister Pham outlined four overarching areas to put the country’s labor productivity growth back on its intended performance track. Enhancing institutional quality, upgrading human capital development, advancing governance capacity, and refining resources management will serve as the basis of Vietnam’s productivity strategy and movement carried out in tandem with endeavors to increase innovation capability. Several national pilot projects will be launched in selected industries that are significant in improving labor productivity in collaboration with the private sector and other stakeholders. While appreciating the long, continuous support from the APO, deepened collaboration and expanded assistance were also highlighted by the Prime Minister as key strategies.

Socioeconomic stability, human capital quality, and work attitude are among the fundamentals that can be capitalized on by Vietnam in aiming for greater prosperity, stated Dr. Indra in a response to the request by Prime Minister Pham for advice on possible solutions to existing challenges. The Secretary-General emphasized the need to look into the institutional arrangement of the productivity movement as it is a key ingredient of a highly productive economy. Institutional fine-tuning together with prioritizing the productivity agenda and continuous strengthening of the capacity of key productivity-promoting institutions could help translate the strategy into tangible results, added the Secretary-General.

The meeting concluded with a strengthened commitment to extended assistance of the APO to Vietnam in boosting and sustaining the country’s productivity. A shared understanding of the necessity to continue technical assistance and advisory initiatives, including monitoring the progress of implementation of the productivity agenda, was also a result of the high-level exchange.

Secretary-General Dr. Indra also took the opportunity to present a report on a recently completed APO project addressing the redesigning of the institutional setting of the productivity movement in Vietnam. The same report was also handed over to Vietnam’s Deputy Minister for Science and Technology Le Xuan Dinh in a separate official ceremony held earlier in the morning of 26 April.