Speeches Shim
While foreign direct investment in Vietnam has reached historic levels, the spillover benefits to Vietnam’s domestic economy have been dampened by the limited supply chain linkages of Vietnamese small and medium enterprises (SMEs). USAID Linkages for Small and Medium Enterprises (LinkSME) aims to address this gap by strengthening the capabilities of the intermediary organizations in Vietnam, such as business associations, export development centers, and SME promotion agencies, in order to facilitate the supplier-buyer relationships between Vietnamese SMEs and lead firms located in Vietnam and expand Vietnamese SMEs’ capacity to participate in manufacturing supply chains.
The Enhancing Worker Rights project aims to strengthen workers’ capacity and increase their access to information so that workers can effectively represent their interests and advocate for protection of their rights. The Solidarity Center is implementing this project in partnership with the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor (VGCL) in key export-oriented production sectors, including electronics, footwear and leather, garments and textiles, and seafood. The project promotes gender equality and strengthens safety and health standards in industrial zones and workplaces in major cities around Vietnam.
Wildlife trafficking - the poaching and illicit trade of marine and terrestrial animals - is one of USAID’s highest priority biodiversity concerns. Global wildlife crime continues to rise at exponential rates and has reached crisis levels, with a black market estimated at up to $20 billion/year. Vietnam is one of the destinations and transit countries for illegal African rhino horn, elephant ivory, and pangolin scales. Demand for wildlife in Vietnam is driven by strong cultural norms that encourage consumption of wildlife for prestige and by erroneous traditional beliefs regarding purported health benefits.
Forests play a critical role in Vietnam by protecting watersheds, preventing soil erosion, and building resilience for communities. Forests in the Annamites Range of Vietnam are home to rare and endemic species found nowhere else in the world. Unfortunately, these forests, and the species that live in them, are disappearing at an alarming rate, as nearby communities increasingly depend on these limited resources for their livelihoods. The USAID Green Annamites project supports the provinces of Thua Thien Hue and Quang Nam to protect the region’s globally significant biodiversity and help local and ethnic minority communities to diversify and improve their livelihoods.
Even though Vietnam’s economy continues to grow, the challenges of growing beyond lower-middle-income status remain persistent. To address this, the country will need a paradigm shift in the structure of its economy and in the functioning of its supporting regulatory environment. This includes transitioning to higher value-added activities within global value chains and upgrading labor skills, technology infrastructure, production models, management systems, and the availability and efficacy of private sector support services.
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