Vietnam’s legislature on Monday passed a resolution on plans for socio-economic development in 2020, including a target of 6.8 percent in GDP growth.

Over 88 percent of the 426 deputies of the National Assembly voted in favor of the resolution for 2020 to achieve a 6.8 percent GDP expansion rate, below-four-percent inflation, a seven percent rise in export turnover, and social development investments accounting for 33-34 percent of the gross domestic product, among others.

The Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research has forecast GDP growth to top 7.05 percent in 2019, higher than the 6.6-6.8 percent previously set by the legislature.     

The National Assembly sets a target of reducing the number of poor households by 1-1.5 percent next year.

The resolution also includes lowering unemployment rates in urban cities to below four percent.   

Perfecting the legal system is cited in the resolution as one of the important measures to fulfill the targets.

The legislature requires the application of trade remedies, technical barriers, and protections against transfer pricing, smuggling, and different forms of trade fraud.  

The National Assembly emphasizes the privatization of state-owned companies, which has been sluggish over the past time, and considers it a priority in 2020.

Next year, Vietnam will continue developing a strong marine economy while working to lift a ‘yellow card’ given by the European Commission (EC) in fishing sectors, according to the resolution.

The EC imposed the warning on seafood exported from Vietnam to its member countries on October 23, 2017 due to the Southeast Asian country’s failure to meet requirements on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing prevention.

Fish exports from ‘yellow card’ countries are subjected to intense scrutiny, which requires that all Vietnamese fish export containers be inspected in a process that can take three to four weeks and cost £500 (US$633) per container.

The National Assembly asserts that Vietnam will resolutely defend its sovereignty, sovereign rights, national interests, and fishers in the East Vietnam Sea.

The legislature’s resolution underlines the protection of Vietnamese citizens in foreign countries, the management of Vietnamese working overseas, and the regulation of foreigners working in Vietnam.

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