Vietnam’s textile and garment industry: an overview

Vietnam's textile and garment industry has been developing strongly and plays an increasingly important role in economic growth of the country. This industry also has a great impact on Vietnam's socio-economic development. At the same time, the textile and garment industry employs more than 1.6 million people, accounting for more than 12% of the industrial workforce and nearly 5% of the country's total labor force. This article aims to provide an overview of the Vietnam’s textile and garment industry and the vision of Vietnam's textile and garment industry to 2030. The results show that Vietnam’s textile and garment industry has contributed great value to Vietnam’s exports and GDP as well as solving employment. However, the Vietnam’s textile and garment industry still has some limitations. First, the mode of production is mainly based on the CMT (the mode of production produces the lowest added value). Second, the incomes and capacities of the labors have not matched with the development of the industry. Third, the size of enterprises is small, so the competitiveness of Vietnam’s textile and garment industry is limited in the international arena.