Economic Growth

• Economic Growth

USAID/Vietnam works with the Government of Vietnam to help strengthen the country’s emerging market-driven economy. USAID provides technical assistance to support commitments under the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), and World Trade Organization accession. At the Government of Vietnam’ request, USAID carries out activities to support an enhanced business environment through legal and regulatory reform, competitiveness, consumer protection, infrastructure financing, and agricultural development.

IMPROVING CONDITIONS FOR TRADE
USAID/Vietnam works with the Government of Vietnam to help strengthen the country’s emerging market-driven economy. USAID provides technical assistance to support commitments under the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), and World Trade Organization accession. At the Government of Vietnam’ request, USAID carries out activities to support an enhanced business environment through legal and regulatory reform, competitiveness, consumer protection, infrastructure financing, and agricultural development.

CREATING AN ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR BUSINESS COMPETITION
Creating an Enabling Environment for Business Competition USAID's Vietnam Competitiveness Initiative project assists Vietnam to improve competitiveness through regulatory reform, better economic governance, and a more friendly business environment. USAID supported the Prime Minister’s Master Plan to simplify thousands of administrative procedures (AP). USAID is also providing capacity building to the AP Control Agency to improve the quality of new APs. This helps to enhance transparency, consistency, and credibility of the regulatory system and reduce costs and risks of doing business. USAID assists with regulatory impact assessments to improve the policy-making process. In addition, USAID has an initiative to develop new legal frameworks and financing models to attract private sector funding for infrastructure development. The annual Provincial Competitiveness Index through its survey, rankings and analysis of provincial economic governance has helped improve the business environment nationwide.

IMPROVING LEGISLATIVE RESEARCH SERVICES
In September 2011 USAID began a program of technical assistance and training to strengthen the Institute of Legislative Research’s overall capacity, improve the services it provides to the National Assembly, and assist the Institute in becoming the leading center for research and policy analysis for the National Assembly.

NEW AGRICULTURAL OPPORTUNITIES TO IMPROVE RURAL LIVELIHOODS 
USAID in collaboration with Mars, Inc. and the World Cocoa Foundation promotes sustainable cocoa production in the Central Highlands, with a focus on ethnic minorities and women’s participation.