Laws of Vietnam

Article 1.- To approve the overall scheme on the army’s participation in the socio-economic construction and development of extremely difficult, deep-lying and remote communes in combination with the building of defense and security zones in strategic, border and coastal areas, with the following principal contents:

1. The project’s name: The overall scheme on the army’s participation in the socio-economic construction and development of extremely difficult, deep-lying and remote communes in combination with the building of defense and security zones in strategic, border and coastal areas.

To boost socio-economic development in the project-covered areas, contributing to step by step improving the people’s material and spiritual life in combination with ensuring defense and security in strategic, border and coastal areas, on the basis of population relocation according to the production planning and long-term defense and security objectives, forming various clusters of border villages and communes, creating a border belt in the entire-people defense disposition to safeguard the Fatherland.

a/ To build the socio-economic infrastructure in the project-covered areas already determined;

b/ To exploit to the maximum the potential of the assigned land in order to develop production in service of immediate and long-term objectives, gradually shift to the commodity economy with different kinds of industrial plants, specialty plants, fruit trees, husbandry, forest planting and protection, focusing on those species of plants and animals of high commodity value.

For important but extremely difficult areas, the army shall directly organize production, combining production development with defense and security;

For difficult areas where people lack conditions for organizing production, the army shall organize production, then receive people coming to settle down, gradually stabilize their life then transfer them to the local authorities for management.

c/ To receive people coming from elsewhere and rearrange the local population so as to boost socio-economic development in the project-covered areas.

d/ To protect the environment, keep the ecological balance by growing new forests, zoning for forest generation and protection, utilizing natural resources in a sustainable and rational manner;

e/ To improve the ethnic minorities’ living conditions, rehabilitate, preserve and develop their cultural traditions.

a/ To continue to perfect the economic-defense zone project of Corps 15;

b/ To make investment in the following new eleven projects:

- The Bac Hai Son economic-defense zone, Military Region 3;

- The Nam Daklak - Binh Phuoc economic-defense zone, Corps 16;

- The Muong Cha economic-defense zone, Military Region 2;

- The Quang Son economic-defense zone, Corps 12;

- The Bu Gia Phuc economic-defense zone, Military Region 7;

- The Khe Sanh economic-defense zone, Military Region 4;

- The Mau Son economic-defense zone, Military Region 1;

- The Binh Lien - Quang Ha - Mong Cai economic-defense zone, Military Region 3;

- The Vi Xuyen economic-defense zone, Military Region 2;

- The A So - A Luoi economic-defense zone, Military Region 4;

- The Bao Lac economic-defense zone, Military Region 1.

This shall serve as basis for the Ministry of Defense to direct investors to formulate concrete investment projects and submit them to the competent authorities for approval according current regulations on investment and construction.

Basing itself on the tasks of socio-economic development in combination with defense and security, and the capability of mobilizing resources, the Ministry of Defense shall consult the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance about how to make suitable investment in concrete projects and construction works, with priority given to the construction of a number of projects and construction works in important and key areas.

5. Capital sources and investment mechanism

a/ Budget capital: Annually the State shall allocate capital from the budget for the construction of essential infrastructure works like roads, irrigation, power, supply of water for daily life, health stations, schools; breeding farms of cluster or regional characters; establishment for technological and scientific transfer according to each project already approved by the competent authorities.

b/ Credit capital:

- The State’s investment credit shall be granted according to current regulations on the State’s investment credit;

- For project-covered areas or construction works with peculiar characteristics, which need the State’s support, the Ministry of Planning of Investment shall submit to the Prime Minister for decision on the case-by-case basis.

c/ There must be proper policies to attract investment capital from organizations and individuals of all economic sectors for these projects or construction works;

d/ To coordinate with localities for effective use of the capital of the projects and national target programs in these localities;

e/ Due to the urgent requirements of the hunger elimination and poverty alleviation as well as defense and security tasks, the projects should be launched simultaneously in different areas but carried out step by step, depending on the capability of allocation of investment capital, with priority being given to investment in a number of key projects;

f/ The investment projects must be carried out according to current regulations on the investment and construction management and the bidding regulations;

g/ The Ministry of Finance shall provide guidance for a budget capital-allocating mechanism suited to the characteristics of each kind of these projects, ensuring their smooth implementation as well as strict capital management.

Article 2.- This Decision takes effect 15 days after its signing.

Article 3.- The ministers of: Defense; Planning and Investment; Finance; Agriculture and Rural Development; Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs; Science, Technology and Environment; the head of the Committee for Ethnic and Mountainous Affairs; the Governor of the Vietnam State Bank; the General Director of Land Administration; the Chairman of the Government Commission on Frontier Issues; the presidents of the People’s Committees of the provinces in the project-covered areas; and the heads of the concerned agencies shall have to implement this Decision.

For the Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister
NGUYEN CONG TAN