The Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics (HCMA) on July 13 organised the Local Development Dialogue 2021 – the first one held online in Hanoi and 58 other localities.

The dialogue was held under the sponsor of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) through the US’s Indiana University and Vietnam Initiative with the theme of “Enforcing development goals in the new normal”.

It aimed at creating a venue for leaders of ministries, sectors and localities, scientists, the business community, and international development partners to discuss, share experience, and propose initiatives and measures to boost local development in the 2021-2030 period with a vision to 2045.

In his opening remarks, Politburo member and Director of the HCMA Nguyen Xuan Thang said that the new normal state requires localities to seize opportunities amidst challenges.

It is necessary to take measures to promote socio-economic development not only during but also after the pandemic, he stated, stressing the importance of increasing the governance over the enforcement of development goals to turn the determination into strategies and policies and put them into action.

Carolyn Turk, World Bank Country Director for Vietnam, said that digital transformation and low-carbon growth will contribute to the improvement of labour productivity in Vietnam in the time to come.

They should be placed as the top priorities of the Vietnamese economy, and if the two factors can be combined, the country’s labour productivity will grow by 1-2 percentage points.

Vietnam should learn from digital transformation models of its neighbouring countries, she suggested, affirming that the WB commits to cooperating with and supporting Vietnam in this field.