Vietnamese experts abroad with salaries of millions of dollars, how does Vietnam attract them?

Continuing the conversation with VietNamNet , Dr. Dinh Thanh Huong affirmed that in order to attract top human resources to work in Vietnam, in addition to fixed salaries and bonuses, it is necessary to build a mechanism for experts and scientists to find capital or resources themselves, and they must be rewarded appropriately for those achievements.

"There are many different reasons why top scientists decide whether or not to return," she said, but she also said there are some basic factors.

It is an environment that makes it easy to integrate and develop capacity - from the legal environment, policies to the working environment, living environment with green space or quality of life...

The gap between “ministerial salary” and the income of experts abroad

Ministries and sectors are building special incentive mechanisms to attract Vietnamese intellectuals abroad, especially in the fields of AI, semiconductors, digital transformation and clean energy. In order for this policy and determination to be truly effective, what do you think the Government and relevant agencies should focus on?

When attracting experts and intellectuals, we can divide them into different levels according to many factors such as age, location and economic background.

There are people of a certain age, with a certain position and a stable economy, and who only desire to contribute, even spending their own money to help the country. Such people do not focus on salary but rather value being involved in big problems, having a good environment to develop and be recognized.

General Secretary To Lam presents a gift to AVSE Global's Knowledge and Projects Executive Director Dinh Thanh Huong at a meeting with prominent overseas Vietnamese intellectuals in Paris (France), October 2024. Photo: Minh Nhat

At another level are those who are good but need more in terms of finance, benefits, work, and position. The position here is not simply a certain title. Many scientists prefer to do pure science but in reality, in Vietnam, having good positions is the only way to attract people. That is also the source of strength to be able to solve the problems more completely.

Coming back to salary and bonus, this issue will be especially important for those who have children to raise, large families to take care of... They need a level of compensation with the basic condition of ensuring an above-average standard of living, and their children can access good healthcare and education.

To be fair, there are many things in Vietnam that are very expensive, such as real estate. With just a salary, not everyone can buy a house, while you have to settle down to have a career. Dr. Dinh Thanh Huong

But I particularly emphasize recognition of contributions. And another factor is having an environment that makes them feel truly fulfilled in their work, research, and scientific freedom.

Speaking specifically about salary and bonus, can you suggest some specific "bullet points"?

Particularly in the matter of salary and bonus, if before there was no real reform and excellence, now we have created that mechanism. However, it is also difficult for state agencies or corporations to have huge sums of money to pay top scientists.

Even if you pay the salary of a minister, which is only a few tens of millions of dong per month, it is still very low compared to your salary abroad. I know there are Vietnamese experts abroad who are receiving millions of dollars per year. So there is no way we can fill that salary gap.

Although it is said that the cost of living in Vietnam is cheaper, and only one-fifth of the salary abroad is enough, but compared to the salary of the top experts mentioned above, the amount of several hundred thousand dollars/year is difficult to pay in Vietnam, especially when it is not for 1-2 individuals.

Besides, to be fair, there are many things in Vietnam that are very expensive, such as real estate. With just a salary, not everyone can buy a house, while as we say, you have to have a home before you can have a career.

Therefore, I think there should be a policy of selling houses at preferential prices or building separate areas with land support from the State, creating relatively good living conditions for experts and scientists to rent or buy at a reasonable price. It is not necessary for all leading experts to live in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, but they can go to places that are eager to develop technology such as Da Nang... Those places should be encouraged to have a mechanism to take care of housing for experts.

Regarding salaries and bonuses, in addition to the fixed amounts initially set, it is necessary to build a mechanism for experts and scientists to find capital or resources themselves, and they must be rewarded appropriately for those achievements. For example, they co-own and benefit when bringing inventions and innovations to market.

Or when they find big projects from abroad, they will also have the right to use the investment and funding. There are very good scientists in the networks, highly appreciated by many places and willing to pay to work with them.

Vietnam needs to create a mechanism to seek funding from the private and international sectors, as a way for experts and scientists to pay themselves.

"We are willing to change when dedication brings better results"

What plans does AVSE Global and its members have to contribute their efforts and intelligence to the country's development?

Personally, I currently spend half of my time in Vietnam. That is on weekends, vacations, early mornings or late evenings, or even during lunch breaks… Not only me but many of my friends in AVSE Global are doing the same.

On average, Dr. Dinh Thanh Huong has 5-6 trips back to Vietnam for work each year.

People cannot explain how we can continue to work at such an intensity for the past ten years. Yet, until now, we are still continuing our programs and projects with all our passion.

More broadly, we connect Vietnamese and Vietnamese-origin experts, intellectuals, and international experts to Vietnam. For example, last July, our R&D forum had 2 scholars in the top 50 thinkers in the world.

At the same time, we still connect and provide advice to localities, hoping to develop together. Many people have come to us to ask about special experts or special industries. We are always willing to support.

For government topics that require experts such as energy or architecture, we can connect, introduce, or nominate engineering positions ourselves...

AVSE Global members always want to continue to contribute. Currently, we work a lot for Vietnam and are very happy about that. If we have to spend more time working in Vietnam, to get greater results, I think many of us are willing to return.

Vietnamnet.vn

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/chuyen-gia-nguoi-viet-o-nuoc-ngoai-luong-vai-trieu-do-viet-nam-thu-hut-the-nao-2445834.html