Hanoi (VNA) – Public investment is expected to be an engine for Vietnam’seconomic growth in the context that global headwinds may challenge the country’sgrowth target of 6.5%, according to experts.

General Director of the General Statistics Office (GSO) Nguyen Thi Huong saidthat the Government, ministries, sectors and localities are striving to push the disbursement of public investment to fuel the development ofconstruction, transport and building materials.

To the end of this year, the Government will prioritise capital forlarge-scale projects, and those which are nearly completed so as to maintainand expand enterprises’ production and business capacity, she said, adding the implementation of public-invested projects will be accelerated to boost aggregatedemand.

Huong described those as bold steps to promote settlement of site clearanceissue, as well as encourage businesses to enter the market, ensuring that thereis sufficient supply of materials for investment.

The GSO suggested stakeholders promote investment-trade activities effectivelywhile improving business climate towards liberalisation, facilitation,socialisation, and reduction of business costs for companies.

Besides, tariff cut policies, and increases of credit guarantee for small- andmedium-sized enterprises are necessary to support businesses, Huong said,highlighting the Government should promote the equitisation of State-ownedenterprsies.

Meanwhile, economist Vu Dinh Anh said the Prime Minister’s resolve to disburseat least 95% of the public investment budget, or over 675 trillion VND (27.4billion USD), is feasible if such barriers as complicated regulations on the publicinvestment law, and bottlenecks in project implementation are removed.

Anh blamed the slow disbursement of public investment to complexadministrative procedures, sluggish site clearance, and poor sense of responsibilityfrom officials in many localities.

Besides, highly fluctuating raw material costs are another factor that hindersthe progress of public investment projects, he said, adding it is necessary toimprove bidding procedures to avoid overruns caused by huge delays.

With the concerted efforts from the whole political system, the Government’sresolve and officials’ innovation and high sense of responsibility, Vietnamwill realise the target set for disbursement of public investment, Anhaffirmed.

VNDirect Securities Corporation expected disbursement of public capital in 2023to grow 20-25% against the previous year, relishing prospects on infrastructuredevelopment in the coming years thanks to the settlement of raw material supplyshortage and increasing material costs.

General Director of Vietnam Report JSC Vu Dang Vinh said that 2023 is a toughyear, and public investment is an important factor for the economy and the constructionsector in particular./.