With the theme "Business Forum 2024: Unlocking new growth  drivers", the Forum contributes to identifying and promoting old and new growth drivers that are extremely important for operating and developing the economy in 2024; proposing appropriate recommendations for businesses in the future. Traditional growth drivers (investment, export, consumption) need to be promoted as well as new growth drivers (science, technology, innovation, digital transformation, green transition, emerging industries and fields such as semiconductor chips, hydrogen...).

VCCI’s Vice Chairman Hoang Quang Phong speaking at the Forum (Photo: TITC)

According to Mr. Hoang Quang Phong, VCCI’s Vice Chairman, right from the first months and first quarter of 2024, Vietnam's economy has achieved many positive results and is gradually regaining growth momentum.

Restoring traditional growth drivers and unlocking and effectively utilising new growth drivers towards inclusive and sustainable development becomes both an urgent and long-term strategic requirement for the Vietnamese economy in 2024 and the following years.

Transforming the growth model according to new development dynamics is a process of transformation in thinking, perception and action. “The Vietnamese business community and entrepreneurs play an important role in the above transformations. Besides the advantages and opportunities, there are also difficulties and challenges mixed together.” emphasised Mr. Hoang Quang Phong.

The Forum attracts a large number of delegates (Photo: TITC)

VNAT’s Vice Chairman Nguyen Le Phuc speaking at the Forum (Photo: TITC)

Regarding the tourism field, VNAT’s Vice Chairman Nguyen Le Phuc shared a number of current issues of concern in the tourism industry, including visas, electricity prices and airfares. A new policy on visa exemption and issuance of electronic visas has been issued by the Government, effective from 15th August 2023. The Prime Minister assigned the Ministry of Industry and Trade to research and apply electricity prices to tourist accommodation establishments in 2024. However, the issue of airfare remains a challenge. To solve this problem, according to VNAT’s Vice Chairman Nguyen Le Phuc, the industry should analyse the factors that make up ticket prices and find ways to remove difficulties so that Vietnam tourism can compete in the international market.

Regarding the growth of international tourists, VNAT’s Vice Chairman Nguyen Le Phuc said, the Chinese market promises to be a source market with high growth potential for our country's tourism industry in the near future. The Chinese tourist market ranked second among markets sending international visitors to Vietnam in the first quarter of this year.

Overview of the Forum (Photo: TITC)

Vietnam tourism has been heavily affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, yet in recent times the industry has recovered quickly. In 2024, Vietnam tourism aims to welcome 17-18 million international visitor arrivals. A good sign is that the number of international visitor arrivals in the first quarter of 2024 has surpassed the number of visitor arrivals in the same period in 2019 - the time before the Covid-19 pandemic occurred. This is one of the motivations for the tourism industry to try to coordinate with relevant parties to remove difficulties and obstacles to better attract tourists.

Besides, VNAT’s Vice Chairman Nguyen Le Phuc added, recently, VNAT has focused on building shared digital platforms in the industry to form a unified and synchronous smart tourism ecosystem. This is a data integration system suitable for Vietnam tourism, thereby bringing positive values to both domestic and international tourists. I hope that units will contribute and support the ecosystem to further develop and better meet the needs of tourists.

At the Forum, experts and economists shared about many topics such as: Economy 2024 and identifying new growth drivers of Vietnam's economy; Institutional reform, improvement of support policies, promoting the efficiency of production and business activities for enterprises; Promote the development of new economic models to create motivation for growth and sustainable development; Promote the development of technology markets, science and technology enterprises and innovation; Green growth - The efforts and initiative of businesses; Motivation and solutions for local businesses to develop…

Tourism Information Technology Center