Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has affirmed that public debt remained below the safety limit of 65 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), and predicted it would reach 64.9 percent by 2016 before sinking to 60.2 percent by 2020.
At the monthly Cabinet meeting in Hanoi on October 29, the government leader said up to 98 percent of public debt was spent on development projects, which was in line with the national public debt strategy.
To pay off debt, the Government will set aside just under 25 percent of the total spending budget. By 2020, 19.5 percent of the budget will be used this way.
The Government will also restructure its debt portfolio and strictly control foreign debts to ensure debt repayments do not exceed 25 percent of GDP.
On the settlement of non-performing loans, PM Dung asked the State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) to lower the proportion of such loans from 5.43 percent recorded in mid-September to three percent next year.
He said that the Government would modify relevant legal documents, making it easier for the Vietnam Asset Management Company (VAMC) to clean up bad debt.
Giving direction on tasks for the remaining months, PM Dung requested ministries, agencies and localities to fine tune market regulations with focuses on administrative reforms, improving the business environment and boosting national competitiveness.
More crackdowns on counterfeit, smuggled and low quality goods were also required on domestic market, especially poultry illegally transported across the border, he said.
