Privatisation as State Advance: Private Indirect Government in Vietnam

This article considers the significance of privatization for the changing nature of state power through a case study of Vietnam. In particular, it is concerned with what privatization -- or equitization as it is called in Vietnam -- can tell the authors in terms of new ways in which power is being exercised in an era of neoliberal globalization. The article is based on in-depth interviews with eight equitized firms in in four provinces in northern and southern Vietnam (Hai Phong, Lao Cai, Tay Ninh and Can Tho) in 2003. In the interviews, which used a structured questionnaire, questions were asked about firm shareholding structure, about how decision making had changed as a result of equitization, and about the business environment in general. From the perspective of equitized firm directors, it is not as if they are experiencing anything very different. In terms of enterprise performance, equitization does seem to have created new incentives where previously there were none (or few).