At the press conference (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s economy willgrow at 6.5 percent in 2017 and expand to 6.7 percent in 2018, according to theAsian Development Bank (ADB)’s “Asian Development Outlook 2017” report.
The figures were revealed by ADB’s economicspecialist Aaron Batten at a press conference on economic development inVietnam – Asia in 2017, which was held in Hanoi on April 10.
The country’s economy will be driven by thedevelopment of domestic manufacturing, construction, retails and wholesales,banking and tourism, the report noted.
Foreign direct investment will boosts thedomestic manufacturing and Vietnam’s exports earnings.
In addition, the number of middle-classVietnamese will double to reach 33 million people in 2030, contributing to theincrease of personal expenditure and retails.
Meanwhile, agricultural produce is projected topick up somewhat in 2017 given the outlook of higher global food demand.However, the agriculture sector of the country will continue its slow growthcompared to other sectors, dragging down the economy.
Major transformation in agriculture sector is avital element to lifting Vietnam economic growth and enabling it to graduate toupper-middle-income status, according to ADB.
Achieving such a transformation requiresaddressing main policy challenges, including rising competitiveness in inputsupply, post-harvest processing and the marketing of produce, said EricSidgwick, ADB Country Director for Vietnam.
He also suggested Vietnam expanding its ruralinfrastructure and supporting agriculture products while launching moresustainable natural resource management.
Simultaneously, it is necessary for Vietnam touse effectively its existing labour and natural resources, he noted.-VNA
