Attending the event was Vice Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee Bui Xuan Cuong; Mr. Vu Tien Loc, a member of the Economic Committee of the National Assembly cum Chairman of the Vietnam International Arbitration Center; Dr. Tran Du Lich, Chairman of the Advisory Council for the implementation of the National Assembly’s Resolution 98/2023/QH15 on piloting specific mechanisms and policies for HCMC’s development; Head of the municipal Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs Vu Thi Huynh Mai; Journalist Tang Huu Phong, Editor-in-Chief of SGGP Newspaper.
Speaking at the seminar, Vice Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee Bui Xuan Cuong said that the overseas remittances sent to HCMC hit US$9.46 billion in 2023, nearly three times higher than foreign direct investment (FDI).
At meetings with HCMC’s leaders, overseas Vietnamese usually express their desire to carry out more investment in the homeland, especially in the southern metropolis. At the beginning of 2023, the municipal People's Committee delegated the Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs of the city to build a project to attract and maximize the effectiveness of remittance flows in the city, the Vice Chairman noted.
He highly appriciated the SGGP Newspaper for organizing a meaningful meeting with the participation of experts and relevant units to give numerous ideas, suggestions, and specific and feasible solutions to mobilize additional resources for the city's development.
According to Journalist Tang Huu Phong, Editor-in-Chief of SGGP newspaper, one of the problems in the city’s development is infrastructure, causing traffic congestion, hospital overload, a lack of schools, urban renovation and embellishment projects that did not achieve the results as expected. The main cause is the lack of resources.
The city has not got adequate mechanisms and policies yet to mobilize resources outside of the budget for infrastructure development. In recent years, remittances have become a significant and stable golden resource, steadily increasing according to annual statistics, he added.
The seminar received many opinions, suggestions, and solutions to attract remittance flows, including the issuance of bonds for overseas Vietnamese to buy to fund the city's infrastructure projects that have a lot of experts’ attention.
Dr. Tran Du Lich said that Resolution 98 also aims to create mechanisms for HCMC to mobilize financial resources for development, including the issuance of bonds. If the city issues foreign bonds, it needs to submit a project to the central government for approval. The issuance of local currency bonds can be implemented immediately.
Dr. Huynh Thanh Dien from Nguyen Tat Thanh University stated that the issuance of bonds for overseas Vietnamese to buy to fund the city's infrastructure projects is necessary. The establishment of remittance investment funds will help bond buyers and overseas Vietnamese participate in the investment. This is an indirect investment channel. The direct investment channel is that the city selects investors in bidding and creates conditions for companies with remittance capital to participate in projects. The channels must display clear and transparent mechanisms and policies to reassure investors.
In her speech, Head of the HCMC Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs Vu Thi Huynh Mai said that the Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs of the city is completing a project on remittances policies in HCMC in the 2023-2024 period to attract remittances flows in the fields of infrastructure, production and business to create jobs and products for the society.
When the project is implemented, at least five economic and social development projects in the city will invite overseas remittance resources.
