Illustrative image (Source: laodong.vn)Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam is projected to be the fifth highest-growing economy inthe world this year and the country has a unique opportunity to increase itsfootprint in the global economy in both trade and investment, StefanieStallmeister, World Bank Acting Country Director for Vietnam, has said.
Shemade the remarks during the unveiling of the WB’s report "What will be the newnormal for Vietnam? The economic impact of COVID-19" on July 30.
TheCOVID-19 pandemic is the largest economic shock for the past 35 years, posingrisks in the health and economic sectors, she added. About 30 million workhands,equivalent to half of the country’s workforce, have been affected by thepandemic.
Thereport argued that Vietnam should not envision a return to the old normal, butrather should define what will be the new normal as the pandemic has changed inso many ways how people live, work, and communicate.
Themain challenge for Vietnam will be finding new drivers of growth to consolidatethe expected recovery.
“Toadapt to the new normal, policymakers must find new ways to compensate for theweakening of the traditional drivers of growth while managing risinginequality,” Stallmeister said.
TheWB report put forward three lines of action for Vietnam, which are to graduallyreopen the country to international visitors, focus on fiscal policy, and supportthe rebound of hardest-hit businesses.
Stallmeisterforecast that Vietnam’s GDP growth could reach 2.8 percent in 2020 and 6.7percent in 2021./.
