Young businesspeople have made major contributions in science,technology and supporting the poor and they need more support to developnew businesses, participants at the conference said.
The event, attended by businessmen, scientists and administrators, washeld by the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union and the Party's CommunistReview to evaluate enterprises' roles in development.
Several recommendations to policy regarding global integration weremade at the conference with more than 50 papers presented.
According to Professor Truong Gia Long, deputy editor-in-chief of themagazine, the country has more than 400,000 enterprises, 90 percent ofwhich are managed and established by young businesspeople.
HCM City has more than 137,000 enterprises; most of them runby young entrepreneurs. The HCM City Young Businessmen Association has738 members who invested more than 23.6 trillion VND (1.2 billion USD),creating jobs for over 87,000 in the city and neighbouring provinces.
"Young entrepreneurs are creative, adventurous and hungry forknowledge," Long said.
Thai Van Re, director of HCM City 's Department of Planning andInvestment, said it is not easy for young entrepreneurs to learn theskills needed to shape successful businesses and access investmentfunding and equipment.
The lack of market and product information and knowledge of policiesthat support enterprises are also barriers to young businesses, Re said.
He suggested related agencies should strengthen their models forbusiness nurseries that nurture young enterprises in Vietnam .Similar models that provide management skills are applied in Europe andJapan .
In HCM City , four such business nurseries have been established inSai Gon Hi-tech Park, Quang Trung Software City , HCM CityUniversity of Agriculture and Forestry and HCM City University ofTechnology. Re suggested that more financial support and prioritypolicies be given to young entrepreneurs.
"The success of many young entrepreneurs is encouraging to ourstudents who are still studying at school. They are eager to graduateand start new businesses," said Tran Hoang Nhan, deputy head of the HCMCity University of Economics.
Nhan added that previously many graduates feared unemployment and wereunsure about starting their own businesses.
He said the city government should hold dialogues with youngbusinessmen to identify their problems./.