USAID praises VN for impressive strategy, proactive measures in tackling COVID-19

He made that statement at the Conference on Recommendations for Regulatory, Policy, and Administrative Procedure Reforms to Support Post-COVID-19 Business Recovery in Ha Noi on May 26.

Thanks to your strong leadership and coordinated action, Viet Nam has been able to re-open safely, months ahead of some other countries, he asserted.

The U.S. Government’s recent commitment of nearly US$9.5 million, through USAID, will support multiple initiatives aiding Viet Nam’s COVID-19 response, he said, adding that the private sector, especially the SME community, was hit the hardest by the economic effects of this virus.

He expressed his hope these additional funds will play a part in helping to lift Viet Nam out of this crisis and to enable the country to continue its march towards upper-middle income status. 

It has been 25 years since the U.S. and Viet Nam established diplomatic ties, and since then Viet Nam has become an increasingly important economic partner for the US, he confirmed.

Over the last three months, the USAID Linkages for Small and Medium Enterprises project, or USAID LinkSME, has supported the Prime Minister's Advisory Council for Administrative Procedure Reform and the Viet Nam Association of Small and Medium Enterprises to conduct a survey to collect feedback from SMEs across Viet Nam.

The survey is collecting information on SMEs’ access to the GVN’s 62 trillion Vietnamese Dong support package. It also seeks their opinion and recommendations for additional administrative procedural reforms. 

He expected that the data from the survey will help Vietnamese policy makers propose effective and easy-to-access regulations and procedures for Vietnamese enterprises.

By Thuy Dung