Viet Nam

Regulatory reforms have long been a focus for Southeast Asian nations, often as a way to improve the business climate and policy frameworks for trade and investment. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has spurred countries around the world to review and update their regulatory policies to respond to the current crisis and prepare for the next one. This publication presents a snapshot of the current state of regulatory reform across the region, with country profiles from all 10 Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) highlighting practices in three priority areas: whole-of-government initiatives, good regulatory practices, and use of digital technologies. It also offers an analysis of common themes identified across the profiles, including trends in regulatory reform, common challenges faced by countries, and future priorities in the region. It was developed in collaboration with the members of the ASEAN-OECD Good Regulatory Practices Network, and key regional partners including the ASEAN Secretariat and the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA).

The Government of Viet Nam has made progress in recent years to improve its frameworks for the ownership and corporate governance of its state-owned enterprises (SOEs). This review assesses the corporate governance framework of the Viet Nam state-owned sector relative to the OECD Guidelines on Corporate Governance of State-owned Enterprises (SOE Guidelines). It then puts forward recommendations to help the Vietnamese authorities address remaining challenges and further professionalise the state ownership function.

Under BEPS Action 14, members of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS have committed to implement a minimum standard to strengthen the effectiveness and efficiency of the mutual agreement procedure (MAP). The MAP is included in Article 25 of the OECD Model Tax Convention and commits countries to endeavour to resolve disputes related to the interpretation and application of tax treaties. The BEPS Action 14 Minimum Standard has been translated into specific terms of reference and a methodology for the peer review and monitoring process. The peer review process is conducted in two stages. Stage 1 assesses countries against the terms of reference of the minimum standard according to an agreed schedule of review. Stage 2 focuses on monitoring the follow-up of any recommendations resulting from jurisdictions' Stage 1 peer review report. This report reflects the outcome of the Stage 2 peer monitoring of the implementation of the BEPS Action 14 Minimum Standard by Viet Nam.

This annual publication compiles comparable tax revenue statistics for Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, People’s Republic of China, Cook Islands, Fiji, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nauru, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Thailand, Tokelau, Vanuatu and Viet Nam. It also provides information on non-tax revenues for selected economies. Based on the OECD Global Revenue Statistics database, the publication applies the OECD methodology to Asian and Pacific economies to enable comparison of tax levels and tax structures on a consistent basis, both among the economies of the region and with other economies worldwide. This edition includes a special feature on strengthening tax revenues in developing Asia. The publication is jointly produced by the OECD’s Centre for Tax Policy and Administration and the OECD Development Centre, in co-operation with the Asian Development Bank, the Pacific Island Tax Administrators Association and the Pacific Community.

This report assesses Viet Nam’s agricultural sector through the lens of the OECD Agro-food Productivity-Sustainability-Resilience (PSR) Policy Framework. Agriculture has played an important role in Viet Nam’s remarkable economic growth over the past thirty years. In the 1990s, government policies contributed to strong agricultural productivity growth, but this has since fallen. OECD Agri-Environmental indicators also reveal weaknesses in the environmental footprint of growth, notably with respect to nutrient balances, as a result of the excessive use of agro-chemicals and poor animal waste management practices. The agricultural sector faces significant resilience challenges from climate change impacts, including sea level rises and more frequent and severe storm events. Although the level of agricultural support provided to farmers is relatively low, policies such as land use regulations are skewed in favour of rice production, thereby maintaining a production structure dominated by small part-time household farms that limit innovation. Viet Nam’s support for general services for agriculture (GSSE) was equivalent to 2.5% of agricultural value added in 2018-20, well below the OECD average. Shifting the focus of support towards research, development, and innovation partnerships with the private sector will contribute to improving the agri-environmental performance of agriculture in Viet Nam. This should ideally be accompanied by a reform of land use regulations.

The Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India is a regular publication on regional economic growth and development in Emerging Asia. It focuses on the economic conditions of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam, as well as China and India. It comprises two main parts. The first part presents the regional economic monitor, depicting the economic outlook and macroeconomic challenges in the region. The second part consists of special thematic chapters addressing a major issue facing the region. The 2022 edition addresses financing sustainable recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic is proving to be extremely costly, both economically and socially and sustainable financing solutions are crucial for an equitable and inclusive recovery. The report explores how governments can obtain additional financing by harnessing bond markets, and use green, social and sustainability bonds to achieve policy objectives.