Report
A 2012 Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Viet Nam

A Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) is an economy-wide data set that captures flows and circulations of products and monetary flows, and reflects the process of initial income distribution and redistribution of industries and economic institutions of an economy in a certain year. Thus, a SAM can depict an overall picture as well as reveal certain characteristics of the structure of an economy. Especially, a SAM may serve as input data for policy analysis models, such as multiplier models and computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, in order to analyse and propose economic policy recommendations.

The Central Institute for Economic Management (ClEM) has collaborated with international agencies7 to construct Vietnamese SAMs for the years 1999, 2000, 2003,2007 and 2011 SAM with the financial support from Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA). Updating the SAM has helped ClEM and other local and oversea organiztions in analysing economic policies in a changing domestic and international context. These SAMs have been used for analyses and assessments, such as: (1) implications of climate change for economic growth and development in Vietnam to 2050,8 (2) the low-carbon options for Vietnam/ (3) Fossil fuel prices and taxes: effects on economic development and income distribution in Vietnam, 10 and other studies.

This report documents a 2012 SAM for Vietnam based on the most recent input-output enterprise survey data for the year 2012 (in the form of a supply-use table, SUT) and the Vietnam Household Living Standard Survey (VHLSS). Compared to the earlier 2011 SAM (which was based on 2007 input-output enterprise survey data), besides updating the information on the structure of the economy to the year 2012, there is more detail in terms of activities and commodities.