Vietnam’s sustainable growth hinges on workforce training, stable business environment: Bosch exec

Vietnam can ensure sustainable growth and successful operations of foreign businesses by focusing on workforce training and maintaining a stable business environment, said a Bosch executive.

Dattatreya Gaur, CEO of Bosch Global Software Technologies (BGSW) Vietnam and Bosch Global Software Technologies, was speaking at a Monday meeting between Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and foreign-invested enterprises.

Regarding workforce development, Gaur suggested that the government builds an ecosystem to connect domestic enterprises, foreign investors, vocational training establishments and universities towards having learners access practical knowledge and skills needed by foreign invested enterprises.

He commended the initial steps that the government has already taken, including establishing the National Innovation Center (NIC) to boost technology transfer between foreign and domestic enterprises.

Gaur also cited the example of Bosch's training program in Vietnam, a cooperative venture between his company and the Lilama 2 College in the southern province of Dong Nai. This April, the program conducted its 10th intake. So far, 238 people have been trained and 134 have advanced to work with Bosch.

To ensure a stable business environment, he urged the Vietnamese government to resolve duplication of roles among agencies in processing administrative procedures including those related to investment, licensing and import. Bosch was willing to cooperate with the government in addressing such bottlenecks, he added.

Bosch now employs 6,000 people in Vietnam as it runs a hi-tech factory and operates in mobile technology, industrial technology, household electrics, and building and energy solutions, Gaur noted.

The firm plans to expand its software operation to 6,000 engineers and enter new sectors like hi-tech agriculture and logistics, he added.

Since its 2007 debut, Bosch Vietnam has invested over 450 million euro ($450 million) in the country, Dominik Meichle, managing director of the company, had said at similar event last year.