(VOVworld) - Overseas remittance to Vietnam has increased rapidly in recent years. In 2012, despite the global economic crisis, overseas remittance to Vietnam totaled nearly 10 billion USD. This resource has contributed greatly to national development.
In the past 10 years, overseas remittance to Vietnam totaled more than 70 billion USD. The money has added a stable foreign currency to the national balance sheet and reduced pressures on exchange rates. In 2011 and 2012, the balance of payments showed a surplus after years of deficits. Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Thanh Son, Head of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs says: "In the last 4 years, remittance from overseas Vietnamese has increased 10 to 15% annually. Despite economic fluctuations, overseas Vietnamese have sent money back home. According to the Committee for Financial Supervision of the State Bank, this year, overseas remittance totaled nearly 10 billion USD. This revealed the overseas Vietnamese people’s sentiments for the homeland despite economic difficulties".
In previous years, overseas remittance was only spent on consumption. In recent years, due to rapid economic growth, overseas Vietnamese have been interested in profitable investment opportunities in Vietnam. There are now more than 2,000 investment projects worth nearly 6 billion USD funded by overseas Vietnamese. These projects cover agriculture, health care, education, industry, real estate and tourism. Hoang Van Lam, an overseas living in the US says: "Thanks to its open door policy, Vietnam has created incentives and favorable conditions for overseas Vietnamese to invest at home. Overseas Vietnamese are allowed to own business licenses and houses in Vietnam. Though we don’t live in Vietnam, we feel safe investing there thanks to favorable legal frameworks".
Overseas remittance is sent to Vietnam through many different channels. There are more than 4.5 million overseas Vietnamese living in more than 100 countries and territories. The State has licensed several organizations to transmit overseas remittance including commercial banks, the post office and overseas remittance service companies.
The government has instructed relevant ministries, agencies and banks to facilitate overseas remittance. The State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese affairs says that this year, it will continue revising documents related to the 2008 Law on Nationality to streamline nationality, home ownership and investment procedures for overseas Vietnamese. The State will create more incentives to encourage overseas remittance recipients to sell foreign currencies to commercial banks and invest in production. In addition, relevant agencies are being urged to work together to ensure the quality of labor exports to attract more overseas remittance. Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Thanh Son says: "We will continue implementing the Politburo’s resolution No 36 and the government’s action program on fine tuning mechanisms, policies and laws to protect the interests of overseas Vietnamese and encourage them to contribute more to national development. We will also help the Association of Overseas Vietnamese Entrepreneurs operate more effectively to mobilize the contribution of overseas Vietnamese to the nation".
The World Bank ranks Vietnam with countries whose overseas remittance potentially accounts for a major portion of their GDP. The mobilization and effective utilization of this resource will contribute greatly to national development.