Localities urged to promote small firms

Cotton is produced at Son Nam Garment Co in Nam Dinh Province. Domestic businesses have been held back by a lack of competitiveness. — VNA/VNS Photo Dinh Lam

Localities should not wait for support from the Government and be active in fostering the development of their small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), heard attendants at a consultation seminar on the SME Development Plan for the 2011-15 period held in Ha Noi yesterday.

The seminar, jointly held by the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), aimed to collect ideas for the SME development plan before its submission to the Government.

Head of the MPI's Agency for SME Development (ASMED) Ho Si Hung said the plan had sought to outline the most important needs of SMEs.

Hung added that the role of associations was important. However, these groups needed to play a more active role in the development of member businesses.

"Viet Nam also needs support from other countries in terms of experience in building and implementing plans for SMEs," he said.

To Hoai Nam, vice chairman cum general secretary of the Viet Nam SME Association, said the new development plan would include specific ways to aid SMEs. He also urged the Government to pay more attention to helping household businesses become larger enterprises.

"Encouragement should be focused on mergers and acquisitions among businesses to increase the number of medium-sized enterprises as well as those participating in exports," Nam said.

He added that this move could also help mobilise capital from household businesses and provide more jobs for labours in rural areas.

A survey carried out by ASMED at 63 enterprises in 30 cities and provinces in the north showed that the scale of capital at SMEs was small and the businesses were held back by a lack of competitiveness. Nearly half of the surveyed businesses had capital of less than VND1 billion (US$47,620).

Director of My Anh Company, Tu Thi Bich Loc, said the most important target in the plan was to generate jobs for more than 4 million labourers, while also ensuring their workers' rights.

Sharing the idea, representatives from several businesses said SMEs had not kept up with price surges though they had had to increase salaries every month.

VCCI's General Secretary Pham Thi Thu Hang said SMEs had difficulties in implementing the Law on Labour.

A representative from northern Hoa Binh Province's Planning and Investment Department asked for solutions to help poor provinces that do not have enough money for establishing credit insurance funds to ensure loans for SMEs.

He said SMEs should pay attention to human resource management.

The SMEs development plan aims to set up 600,000 new businesses and provide training for 640,000 people at SMEs with a total funding of VND400 billion ($19 million).

The annual number of newly-established enterprises nationwide would increase on average by 22 per cent, with SMEs seeing an increase of 15 per cent increase.

The plan, which hopes to generate 3 million new jobs during the next four years, also aims to increase the number of SMEs participating in exports by 7 per cent.