Funding

The Hanoitimes – The support package delivery must ensure seriousness, publicity, transparency.

The Vietnamese government will support unskilled laborers directly affected by Covid-19 pandemic from May 10, local media reported.

It is expected that as of May 15, the government will finish paying the relief money to beneficiary groups, including revolutionary contributors, social assistance beneficiaries and poor people.

At a recent regular meeting of the Vietnamese government, Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung affirmed that the support package delivery must ensure seriousness, publicity, transparency.

“We have not received any negative feedback from the localities regarding the payment of the financial aids,” Dung said.

So far, 63/63 localities in Vietnam have delivered the welfare packages to the people in need; 40/63 provinces and cities have paid over VND20 trillion (US$855.57 million) for revolutionary contributors, social assistance beneficiaries and poor people.

People in Nguyen Trai ward, Ha Dong district receive government aid. Photo: Thuy Truc

At a recent regular meeting of the Vietnamese government, Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung affirmed that the support package delivery must ensure seriousness, publicity, transparency.

“We have not received any negative feedback from the localities regarding the payment of the financial aids,” Dung said.

So far, 63/63 localities in Vietnam have delivered the welfare packages to the people in need; 40/63 provinces and cities have paid over VND20 trillion (US$855.57 million) for revolutionary contributors, social assistance beneficiaries and poor people.

On April 24, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc signed a decision to roll out a relief package worth VND62 trillion (US$2.7 billion) to support vulnerable people directly affected by Covid-19.

The package covers six beneficiary groups who would receive financial support in cash during three months starting April.

The funding for the package would come from state and provincial budgets, including savings from regular expenditures for meetings, workshops, abroad working trips, festivals and others.

In addition to direct financial support, workers are entitled for deferral in contribution for pensions and death gratuity funds in 12 months.

Workers could submit application for financial support via postal services, email, and fax, among others, without having to seek certification from local authorities.

Hanoi urgently identifies the beneficiaries

There are three groups of employees entitled to benefit from the US$2.7 billion package, including employees whose labor contracts were suspended, those taking leave without payment; laid-off employees not eligible for unemployment benefits; and workers who have no labor contracts and have lost jobs.

The Hanoi Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs has requested district People’s Committees to screen 1.477 million employees entitled to receive the aids, of them 840,000 are people without labor contracts and have lost their jobs. Currently, the districts keep identifying the beneficiaries in accordance with the process and procedures.

Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Hong Dan said that his department has made a written request and guidelines for identifying people affected by Covid-19 for assistance.

In order to identify the right beneficiaries, the city’s authorities will ask the districts to set up a review council headed by the Chairpersons of the local People’s Committee, Dan added.

The Hanoitimes – Many needy people said they felt touched when receiving the aid from Hanoi’s government, because this is timely attention.

Districts in Hanoi have disbursed more than VND3,500 billion (US$149 million) to support people hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, Kinhtedothi.vn reported.

Earlier, on April 29, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Ngo Van Quy signed a decision to disburse a part of the money to support people in need, including revolutionary contributors, social assistance beneficiaries and poor people.

People in Yen Nghia ward, Ha Dong district receive governmental aid. Photo: Kinhtedothi.vn

In this period, the aid is estimated to benefit about 414,000 people with a total budget of over VND505.6 billion (US$21.7 million).

Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Hong Dan said as of May 3, many districts had given out the money to the right people.

By May 4 afternoon, Hanoi has basically completed delivering the support.

Head of Division of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs of Cau Giay district Nguyen Quang Hong said that the disbursement has been carried out with transparency and timeliness to support 3,310 people in the district with a total budget of nearly VND5 billion (US$213,004).

Many needy people said they felt touched when receiving the aid from Hanoi’s government, because this is timely attention.

“During the social distancing period due to Covid-19, my son-in-law and my daughter lost their jobs, and we have two children to support, thus, life has been very hard. I’m very touched since this assistance comes at the right moment,” said Truong Do Chuyen, a veteran.

On April 24, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc signed a decision to roll out a relief package worth VND62 trillion (US$2.7 billion) to support vulnerable people directly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The package covers six beneficiary groups who would receive financial support in cash during three months starting from April.

The funding for the package would come from state and provincial budgets, including savings from regular expenditures for meetings, workshops, abroad working trips, festivals and others.

In addition to direct financial support, workers are entitled for deferral in contribution for pensions and death gratuity funds in 12 months.

The Hanoitimes – Hanoi’s authorities will try to disburse a part of the money to support people in need before April 30.

Hanoi’s government is about to spend more than VND3,500 billion (US$149 million) to support some 1.4 million vulnerable people directly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, local media quoted Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Ngo Van Quy as saying on April 28.

Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Ngo Van Quy speaks at the conference. Photo: HNM

Quy said Hanoi’s authorities will try to disburse a part of the money to support people in need before April 30, including revolutionary contributors, social beneficiaries and poor people. In this tranche, the support is estimated to benefit about 414,000 people with a total budget of over VND500 billion (US$21,279).

For the speedy disbursement of the relief money, Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung has encouraged localities to use banking and online public services.

On April 24, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc signed a decision to roll out a relief package worth VND62 trillion (US$2.7 billion) to support vulnerable people directly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The package covers six beneficiary groups who would receive financial support in cash during three months starting April.

The funding for the package would come from state and provincial budgets, including savings from regular expenditures for meetings, workshops, abroad working trips, festivals and others.

In addition to direct financial support, workers are entitled for deferral in contribution for pensions and death gratuity funds in 12 months.

Workers could submit application for financial support via postal services, email, and fax, among others without having to seek certification from local authorities.

Vietnam reports most impressive growth in financial services regionally, particularly in the banking sector

Global equity investment shed 13.1 per cent in the total number of transactions and plunged 33.8 per cent in total transaction value in the first half last year, compared to the corresponding period in 2019.

Within the ASEAN-5 and Vietnam, equity transactions were slowing down last year compared to a robust 2019. The number of transactions dropped from 230 cases in the second half of 2019 to 200 cases in the first six months of 2020, meanwhile, the transaction value was curtailed by more than half, from $9.15 billion to just $4.3 billion.

Amid chaos and uncertainties due to the coronavirus pandemic, Vietnam’s equity investment market has set a record with 59 transactions valued at $1.14 billion, a slight increase compared to 2019.

Technology has maintained its growth momentum setting a five-year record in the number of transactions. Investments have channelled into fresh tech startups which provide breakthrough solutions in retail and services, such as booking and placement of online healthcare consultation, e-commerce, and provision of recruitment and human resource platforms, among others.

The scale of transactions was, however, modest as most of the ventures targeted Vietnam’s fledging tech startups.

A series of sectors have been showing bright investment prospects in the beginning of 2021, including logistics, education, healthcare, technology, and renewable energies.

Companies in retail and services related to breakthrough solutions were also high on the investors’ radar. For instance, the leading US equity fund Warburg Pincus poured $100 million into MoMo’s e-wallet which had 20 million users in 2019, and $130 million came from Singapore-headquartered private equity firm Northstar Group directly into Tiki’s pockets – one of Vietnam’s three leading e-commerce platforms in 2020.

Vingroup, Vietnam’s top private conglomerate, continues to hit records in the transaction value through GIC’s $500 million investment into Vincommerce (retail) in 2019, and $650 million investment from KKR and Temasek into Vinhomes (real estate) in 2020.

Cash flows into the healthcare sector are increasingly becoming a trend. Vietnam’s two leading investment funds, Mekong Capital and VinaCapital, have jumped on the bandwagon through a $31.8-million injection into Pharmacity’s drugstore chain and a $26.7-million deal with Thu Cuc Hospitals.

A series of sectors have been showing bright investment prospects in the beginning of 2021, including logistics, education, healthcare, technology, and renewable energies.

The market size of the logistics sector is expected to reach $113 billion in 2022, corresponding to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.6 per cent. The growth is supported by new-generation free trade agreements, flourishing e-commerce, and the fact that global tech titans like Apple, LG, and Panasonic have resorted to Vietnam to diversify their supply chains and distribution networks in a bid to mitigate impacts from US-China trade war and the global health crisis.

Meanwhile, the education sector continues to attract investors who are leveraging Vietnam’s growing middle-class and an upsurge in education spending. The policies encouraging investment into projects that are wholly owned by foreign and private investors have also contributed to growth in the sector.

The healthcare sector may allure investors due to a raft of factors, such as the quickly ageing Vietnamese population.

The number of people aged above 65 has been rising quickly at a pace of 8 per cent in 2019 to reach 16 per cent by 2040. Similarly, per capita average healthcare spending rose from $194 in 2019 to $309 in 2024, alongside a shortfall in quality human resource and healthcare infrastructure, leading to supply deficiencies.

In recent years, the tech field was glittering in the eyes of risk-avid and equity investors with CAGR reaching 26.1 per cent during 2015-2019. This field is beneficial from a number of factors like tax incentives, government credit support, and low-cost and quality workforce.

As for renewable energy, with total installed capacity reaching 54,880MW in 2019 Vietnam ranked second in ASEAN in power system’s total installed capacity. A priority field, the government has set forth the targets of renewable energy accounting for 6.5 per cent, 6.9 per cent, and 10.7 per cent by 2020, 2025, and 2030 respectively.

To reach these goals, the renewable energy field would need $10.8 billion in investment capital annually until 2030. Renewable energies are bestowed numerous incentives like preferential tariffs and whole foreign ownership at energy firms.

The quick increase in the number of renewable energy projects has also entailed challenges as power capacity has been cut due to supply exceeding demand in some areas and system overload as current infrastructure is unable to absorb power output from new projects.