Steer said it was crucial for Vietnam to mobilise funds to support the private sector, which has struggled to obtain bank credit in an environment that favours state-owned enterprises. The government has said it expects gross domestic product this year to be six percent, a figure economists have called unrealistic in light of fallout from the Asian financial crisis and the difficulty of doing business in Vietnam. Steer has already said foreign donors would express deep concern over Vietnam's slow pace of economic reforms when they meet in Paris.
Aid forms a key component of Hanoi's development strategy and is a valuable source of hard currency.