At the Government’s February meeting in Hanoi on March 3, 2022

A report at the meeting showed that in February and the first two months of 2022, the country saw positive results in socio-economic development.

The consumer price index rose 1.68 percent in two months, while State budget collection rose 10.8 percent year on year, completing 20.9 percent of the yearly estimate. Disbursement of public investment capital reached 8.16 percent of the plan for the year, a five-year high for the period. At the same time, import-export revenue rose 17.6 percent over the same time last year, and foreign direct investment surged 123.8 percent year on year.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been put under control with low number of death despite high number of infections.

The report underlined that unpredictable and complicated developments in the world political-economic situation such as the Russia-Ukraine tension or rising oil prices have put remarkable impacts on the domestic situation. 

Government members gave analysis and forecast for the country’s situation, and proposed solutions for socio-economic development as well as COVID-19 control. They also recommended ways to minimise the impacts of the Ukrainian situation, especially on prices, supply chain and export activities.

The Prime Minister said difficulties and challenges will be greater than advantages and opportunities in the months to come with many unpredictable factors. 

Therefore, ministries, sectors and localities should continue drastically implementing measures to maintain macro-economic stability, control inflation and ensure major balances and coordinate monetary and fiscal policies, while cutting input cost and enhance domestic production capacity, he said.

PM Chinh directed the formation of a special taskforce to deal with issues related to the Ukrainian situation, which is led by Deputy PM Pham Binh Minh.

He also stressed the need to speed up public investment disbursement, while requesting ministries, sectors and localities to complete their plans on implementing the socio-economic recovery programme within March and submit their pandemic prevention and control plans for the 2022-2023 period to the Government this week.

He stressed the need to firmly defend national independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, promote diplomatic activities, strengthen international integration, maintain political stability, security, law, and order. 

The PM reminded ministries, sectors and localities to make good preparations for the upcoming 31st Southeast Asian Games.

Regarding COVID-19 prevention and control activities, he asked the Ministry of Health to evaluate herd immunity situation and study international experience toward considering COVID-19 as an endemic disease.

In the afternoon the same day, the Government examined pre-feasibility reports on the projects to build Belt Road No.4 in the capital region and Ho Chi Minh City’s Belt Road No.3.