After ten years of economic stagnation following the unification of the country in 1975, after the fall of Saigon, the Communist Party of Vietnam adopted in 1986 a program of broad economic reforms known as the Doi Moi or “renovation.” It introduced new market rules were, opened up to a greater degree of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and improved the business climate. By and large, the “Doi Moi” reforms brought about profound changes in the Vietnamese “social fabric.”
Nonetheless, even after this liberalization effort, the Vietnamese government still have a great deal of control and influence exerts over major economic sectors through its overly involvement in large state-owned conglomerates and a range of other enterprises, including the banking system. In 2010 alone, the state sector continued to account for about 36% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).