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| Ms. Trinh Thi Huong, Deputy Director General of the Agency for Private Enterprise and Collective Economy Development, speaking at the workshop |
Innovating support approaches
SMEs are an important component of the private economic sector. They play a vital role in job creation, poverty reduction, improving workers’ incomes, contributing to the State budget, and promoting economic growth. Recognizing this important role and position, for the first time, the National Assembly adopted the Law on Support for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in 2017. The promulgation of the Law has addressed shortcomings and inadequacies in previous SME support policies and implementation mechanisms.
After over 8 years of implementation, numerous support policies under the Law on Support for SMEs have generated positive impacts on SMEs, helping them transform their production, business models, and improve governance quality. However, the implementation process has also revealed several shortcomings and limitations. Consequently, the Ministry of Finance has proposed the Government submit to the National Assembly for consideration the amendments and supplements to several provisions of the Law on Support for SMEs; in which, the draft amendments aim to promptly institutionalize the guidelines and policies of the Party and the State, address shortcomings in existing regulations, and ensure practical and effective support mechanisms aligned with socio-economic development requirements in the new period.
Ms. Trinh Thi Huong, Deputy Director General of the Agency for Private Enterprise and Collective Economy Development, affirmed that support policies must place SMEs at the center. Furthermore, it must be grounded in practical realities, and effectively address difficulties and obstacles faced by enterprises in market entry, access to resources, production and business operations, and enhance competitiveness. Accordingly, support policies should be designed in a focused, targeted, and elective manner, suitable for different groups of enterprises based on their scale, sector, and stage of development. Support methods should also be innovated toward using the results of outcome-based resource allocation associated with specific and measurable objectives and outputs, which can be quantified, ensuring ease of implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.
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| SMEs receive support for trade promotion activities |
At the same time, the proposed amendments to the Law on Support for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises seek to strengthen decentralization and the delegation of authority in tandem with accountability mechanisms, ensuring consistency in state management of SME support while enhancing the initiative and flexibility of local governments in implementing policies. The amendments also aim to reform implementation methods by accelerating end-to-end digital transformation based on big data and artificial intelligence, thereby improving transparency and openness. In addition, they seek to simplify requirements and procedures, reduce administrative burdens and costs, and make it easier for enterprises to access support policies.
Developing policies tailored to local characteristics
As one of the leading localities in implementing the programs that accompany and support enterprises, Hue has promulgated and implemented various policies tailored to different target groups, ranging from newly established enterprises and businesses converted from household business models to enterprises currently in operation. These efforts have helped Hue rank first nationwide in the business support policy sub-index, according to the results of the 2025 Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI 2025).
Mr. Le Van Cuong, Deputy Director of the Department of Finance, noted that current policy mechanisms still lack sufficient local specificity. Each locality has different enterprise structures, industrial sectors, and development potential; therefore, applying a rigid joint policy framework would lack flexibility and make it difficult to maximize overall effectiveness. Accordingly, policy formulation should consider enhancing decentralization and delegation of authority to local governments to ensure compatibility with the socio-economic development characteristics of each region and locality.
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| Mr. Cung Trong Cuong, Director of Hue Institute for Development Studies, speaking at the workshop |
Regarding enterprise digital transformation, the revised Law should incorporate mechanisms to support expenses related to digital platform leasing, digital transformation consultancy services, and digital workforce training; encourage enterprises to participate in digital transformation programs through financial support mechanisms, tax incentives, or technical assistance from State Authorities. In addition, supplementary measures are needed to strengthen linkages between large enterprises and SMEs to establish production and supply ecosystems and support for sustainable development.
Experts, officials from various departments and sectors, along with business representatives, also centered their discussions on matters related to credit accessibility, financial assistance mechanisms, land-use policies, and initiatives promoting green and sustainable business growth. Many delegates stressed that the proposed amendments to the Law on Support for SMEs should prioritize more practical and effective support measures, streamline administrative procedures, strengthen data integration among state management agencies, and create a more enabling environment for enterprises to pursue sustainable growth amid deepening international economic integration.