Laws of Vietnam

Beside the above-mentioned positive changes, the socio-economic situation still sees great difficulties: Export value is much lower than that of the same period of 2001; agricultural production is facing great challenges, particularly prolonged droughts which are harsher than ever; forest fires have broken out to a serious extent; industrial production in a number of big industrial centers has seen unstable growth; a number of social domains have not yet seen marked improvement, the people’s life in areas hit by natural calamities still meets with numerous difficulties.

The tasks to be accomplished in the coming months are extremely heavy. In order to overcome the aforesaid constraints and limitations, well fulfil the 2002 socio-economic development targets and create a momentum for the realization of the 2001-2005 five-year plan, the Government hereby requests the ministries, branches and localities to, first of all, grasp and well implement the groups of measures already adopted by the National Assembly, and at the same time, expeditiously apply the following additional measures to execute the 2002 socio-economic plan:

I. STEPPING UP ECONOMIC RESTRUCTURING

Stepping up economic restructuring is considered a group of measures of both urgent and strategic significance. In order to accelerate the economic restructuring, synchronous measures should be taken. For the immediate future, efforts should be concentrated on applying the following measures:

1. The planning for economic restructuring must emanate from the demands of domestic and overseas markets, strengths and weaknesses of our products in each period so as to determine the roadmap for raising the competitiveness of each product in each region. Plannings must be done for regions, not simply for administrative territories, and adjusted in time so as to be able to respond to changes in market demand. Under the determined plannings, the functional agencies should focus on organizing the implementation thereof, quickly developing investment programs linked to enterprises and production households under an appropriate mechanism able to speed up the economic restructuring.

2. To continue the economic restructuring in agriculture as prescribed in the Government’s Resolution No. 05/2001/NQ-CP of May 24, 2001 on a number of additional measures to administer the 2001 economic plan, and to implement with appropriate adjustments the contents of the Government’s Resolution No. 09/2000/NQ-CP of June 15, 2000 on a number of undertakings and policies on economic restructuring and farm produce consumption.

To speed up the carrying out of the project to grow 5 million hectares of forest, in combination with the program to grow material trees for the production of 1 million tons of pulp and paper on the basis of a planning which combines paper and pulp mills with material areas.

To develop husbandry at a growth rate higher than cultivation to meet the domestic and export demands for meat, milk and leather. The Ministry of Industry shall coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the concerned ministries and localities in finalizing soon a scheme on planning the development of dairy processing plants in combination with material zones in the spirit of the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 167/2001/QD-TTg of October 26, 2001 on a number of measures and policies to develop milch cow farming in Vietnam in the 2001-2010 period for submission to the Prime Minister.

Aquaculture is a strength that can and should be quickly developed. The Ministry of Aquatic Resources shall assume the prime responsibility together with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to review the planning, arrange suitable coastal land areas for aquaculture, shift precarious- and low-yield rice cultivation areas to aquaculture. The Ministry of Aquatic Resources shall develop concrete investment programs and plans or guide the localities, organizations and individuals of all economic sectors to invest in rearing shrimps and fishes; give technical guidance on aquaculture and prevention and fighting of their diseases and epidemics.

In parallel with screening and adjusting the adopted policies, supplementing new ones to encourage economic restructuring in agriculture according to plannings and plans, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall direct the formulation and review of highly effective restructuring models for widespread application.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall quickly elaborate a scheme on the supply of equipment for forest protection, forest fire prevention and fighting to be capable of coping with any incidents.

3. To carry out the industrial restructuring along the direction of quickly increasing the ratio of manufacturing industries, especially those industries and industrial products involving the use of high technologies, industries to manufacture goods for export, industries in service of agricultural development and rural economy such as textile and garment, footwear, mechanical engineering, food, foodstuff and farm produce processing… To encourage the development of material zones, thus creating stable and permanent material sources for the processing industries.

The electronics, information technology, telecommunications, mechanical engineering and export production industries, particularly the textile and garment and footwear industries, are required to not only quickly raise their outputs but also increase the domestically-made value in the whole product value.

To carry out projects to develop the power, coal, oil and gas exploitation and processing industries, ensuring a balanced and secure energy development. To quickly raise the mechanical engineering capacity, first of all in service of agriculture, forestry and fishery. To develop selectively establishments engaged in ore exploitation, metallurgy, chemical, fertilizer and construction material production. To actively meet the development demands of the defense industry.

The ministries and the People’s Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities (hereinafter referred to as provinces and cities for short) shall direct the production establishments to raise competitiveness on the basis of rearranging production, renovating technologies, and raising managerial capability. The branch-managing ministries must, together with enterprises’ associations and corporations elaborate the production plannings for each commodity line, make detailed plans for strongly developing mainstream and key products and products with competitive edge which directly create value to generate economic growth, and concurrently take appropriate measures to support those enterprises and products which are inferior in terms of quality and prices to those in regional countries.

4. To strongly restructure the services along the direction of concentrating investment in developing those capable of quickly recovering capital and contributing greatly to the State budget such as tourism, financial and banking services, air transport, postal and telecommunication services… To bring into full play all resources of the State and society to develop, and raise the quality of, various services for the all-sided human development such as education, health and sports. To expand services catering for the public and family life.

5. To promote the direction and administration by the ministries for key economic regions, especially the zoning, planning and investment work (the Ministry of Planning and Investment); science, technology and environment (the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment); job training (the General Department of Job Training, the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs); to enhance coordination and cooperation between the provinces and cities in the key economic regions and the outside provinces, form a number of associations which shall join efforts to boost the development of key economic regions.

The Government and the entire society shall actively support difficulty-hit areas, particularly the northern mountainous areas, the Central Highlands, and the Mekong river delta, through various socio-economic development programs in combination with the hunger eradication and poverty alleviation and employment programs.

To prioritize the supply of water for the people’s daily life, drinking water for cattle, to make every effort to ensure adequate water sources for agricultural production; to accelerate the execution of projects to build irrigation works with a view to raising the water storage capacity in rainy seasons as well as the water regulation capacity in dry seasons. Overcoming droughts must go hand in hand with preventing and fighting forest fires, floods and typhoons.

The ministries shall, together with the local authorities, particularly in the Mekong river delta and the central coastal region, adjust the plannings on production, infrastructural systems and population quarters, concentrate efforts on preventing riverbank and coastal landslides so as to actively prevent and control typhoons and floods; organize safe shelters for fishermen to anchor their ships and boats when typhoons strike. To create conditions for the people in the Mekong river delta to lead a secure and stable life without frequent evaluation, and to maintain travel, schooling and medical examination and treatment services when floods occur.

The ministries and localities should create conditions in terms of finance, land, market, varieties, technique and job training for the cooperative economy and cooperatives to take a new step in supporting and complementing the household economy and the farm economy; for the small- and medium-sized enterprises, the private economy and foreign-invested enterprises to develop in diversified forms, branches and trades, truly becoming important sectors contributing to creating wealth and employment as well as raising the competitiveness of the national economy.

II. STEPPING UP DEVELOPMENT INVESTMENT AND STIMULATING CONSUMPTION DEMANDS

1. The ministries and the provincial/municipal People’s Committees shall scrutinize the programs and projects with State budget investment so as to arrange concentrated and prioritized investment according to the planned objectives. To allocate adequate reciprocal capital to ODA projects so as to ensure the schedules set in the signed treaties, especially projects slated for completion in 2002 and 2003. To allocate capital to new projects only when they have completed all investment procedures according to current regulations. The ministries and localities shall direct the investors to expeditiously organize bids and proceed with subsequent steps so that new projects can be deployed on schedule.

The localities that acquire big revenues from the implementation of the land - for - project mechanisms, rewards for budget over-collections, a number of revenues and surcharges permitted to be retained… should allocate capital for investment projects to build technical and social infrastructures as well as for operating investment projects to renew their technologies, and ensure conformity with the investment procedures currently in force.

The ministries and localities which have been permitted by the Prime Minister to transfer the capital construction capital under the 2001 plan to 2002 must rapidly complete the remaining volumes and, at the same time, shall have the responsibility to deploy the capital sources already added by the Prime Minister to their 2002 plans under Decision No. 216/2002/QD-TTg of March 25, 2002 and Notice No. 17/BKH-TH of April 5, 2002 of the Ministry of Planning and Investment for a number of urgent projects and tasks in 2002.

2. The Ministry of Finance shall continue advancing capital for the investors to carry out transitional and important projects so as to ensure uninterrupted construction according to schedule. The superior authorities of the investors shall have to supervise and oversee the implementation tempo and supervise the use of advanced capital amounts for the right purposes. The finance agencies shall refuse to advance and pay capital to projects which fail to comply with the current regulations on investment and construction management.

3. The ministries and localities shall organize project evaluation and approval as authorized by the Prime Minister with regard to Group A projects already listed in the approved plannings or already approved for investment, for which only feasibility study reports, not pre-feasibility study reports, are required.

To assign the chairmen of the Managing Boards of corporations 91 to approve the feasibility study reports of Group B and Group C projects under the management of their corporations, which have been included in the plannings or approved by competent authorities in the five-year plans, regardless of their investment capital sources, and to ensure by themselves capital sources for the projects to be carried out according to schedule.

4. The investment project owners must envisage all jobs related to ground clearance (areas to be cleared, number of people to be resettled, other properties of people, collectives, State…to be relocated), serving as a basis for computing sufficiently the required investment capital amounts, working out appropriate implementation plans close to the project implementation tempo. The presidents of the provincial/municipal People’s Committees shall determine the compensation brackets and decide on the specific compensation amounts compatible with the State’s bracket, organize and direct the ground clearance before the projects are carried out.

5. Group B and Group C projects, which are not required to go through international bids, shall be allowed to apply the form of contractor appointment for consultancy and design bidding packages. They shall also be allowed to apply the form of competitive offers for construction and construction bidding packages with technical designs and cost estimates already approved and for equipment procurement bidding packages which meet all technical parameters. The project owners shall decide on their own and take full responsibility before law for all contents related to contractor appointment and competitive offers.

The projects using 100% domestic capital shall not be required to go through international bids, except for those equipment and high-technologies which cannot be made at home and must be imported. In cases of necessity, the projects of this category may hire foreign and domestic consultants and supervisors or procure technologies for domestic manufacture thereof.

6. In the second quarter of 2002, the Ministry of Planning and Investment shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the concerned ministries in summing up and evaluating the programs and solutions already executed to stimulate investment and consumption demands; to consider thoroughly all pluses and minuses in each domain, then proceed to formulating a comprehensive and synchronous program for stimulating investment and consumption demands in the coming time, aiming to vigorously push up economic restructuring, prioritize the development of branches and products with competitive edge, areas and regions with available advantages; and encourage and attract investment.

7. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the concerned ministries in continuing to create favorable conditions and remove hurdles regarding land, finance, credit, labor and wage, provide support in terms of training, science and technology, information and trade promotion so as to promote the development of the private economic sector along the direction of continuously raising its efficiency and competitiveness, making more investment in the production sector; and entering into cooperation and joint ventures among themselves and with other economic sectors.

8. Within the second quarter of 2002, the Government shall issue a decree amending its Decree No. 36/CP of April 24, 1997 promulgating the Regulation on industrial parks, export-processing zones and high-tech parks. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall study and formulate a scheme for experimenting a number of new forms of attraction of foreign direct investment capital such as capital management companies, partnerships, investment funds…; and regulations on assignment, decentralization and coordination of the State management over foreign investment, then submit them to the Government for promulgation in the third quarter of 2002.

By the end of the second quarter of 2002, the ministries which have been assigned the above-mentioned task shall have to finalize documents guiding the implementation of the Government’s Decree No. 90/2001/ND-CP of November 23, 2001 on assisting the development of small- and medium-sized enterprises and the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 132/2000/QD-TTg of November 24, 2000 on a number of policies to encourage the development of rural occupations and trades.

9. The localities should use local budgets to support investment in building the networks of bazaars, first of all markets located at the centers of townships, towns and cities, markets specializing in selling farm produce, and central markets of the economic regions.

10. The State budget shall support through the Development Assistance Fund investments in infrastructural works as well as investment projects to renovate salt-making technologies in order to raise the output and quality and ensure the adequate supply of this commodity for the domestic demands. The Ministry of Finance shall coordinate with the concerned ministries in submitting to the Prime Minister the principles for this support and guiding the implementation thereof as from the second quarter of 2002.

11. The enterprises manufacturing and trading in supplies and machinery within the country in service of agriculture and fishery may borrow development investment credit capital from the State for implementing, or supporting the implementation of, the modes of installment payment, deferred payment, agency and two-way contracts with farmers. The Ministry of Finance shall coordinate with the concerned ministries in submitting to the Prime Minister the principles for this support and guiding the implementation thereof as from the second quarter of 2002.

12. The State-run commercial banks shall step up the lending of medium-term and long-term loans and, at the same time, closely coordinate with the Development Assistance Fund in expanding the form of post-investment interest support lending.

13. In order to immediately stop the illegal speculation in dwelling houses and residential land, which causes the price "fever" in many localities, especially in urban areas, the Government assigns the Ministry of Construction to supervise and scrutinize mechanisms and policies so as to submit to the Prime Minister the measures to stabilize the housing and residential land markets. The provinces and cities must supervise, stop and strictly deal with the cases of sale or transfer of the agricultural land use right and conversion of agricultural land into dwelling house construction land in contravention of current law provisions and the plannings already approved by competent authorities; to promptly screen the housing projects, take measures to deal with and stop promptly the cases where the investors sell land and house foundations and sub-divide projects for selling land; to inspect and strictly handle the cases of illegal purchase, sale and transfer of the land use right, allocation of land ultra vires; for projects which have been approved but fail to be constructed according to schedule or are being constructed against regulations and plannings, they must be re-adjusted or shall have their investment licenses, land allocation or land lease decisions withdrawn.

14. The provincial/municipal People’s Committees should expeditiously elaborate the housing development programs, reach unanimity within the provincial/municipal Party Committees and People’s Councils so that these programs become an important and regular task in their respective socio-economic development plans. To focus on well directing the planning of population quarters on the basis of the socio-economic development plannings and the overall planning on urban and rural development; to manage construction according to the plannings, put an end to the situation of construction at variance with the plannings. In urban centers housing development must be carried out in the form of projects and the building of high-rise condominiums shall be considered a major solution to make the people’s living conditions more and more comfortable and civilized.

15. In cities, in parallel with building new dwelling houses, to focus on directing the renovation and re-building of degraded condominiums no longer safe for their occupiers and dwelling blocks which fail to ensure minimum amenities. The Mekong river delta provinces must focus on directing the definite completion of the programs on building population clusters and lines and dwelling houses in frequently-flooded areas, and should concurrently take concrete directing measures so as to create conditions for the inhabitants in areas frequently hit by typhoons, landslides and other difficulties to have stable and safe homes.

16. The localities shall set up local housing development funds, concentrating revenues (from the sale of dwelling houses under the State ownership according to the Government’s Decree No. 61/CP of July 5, 1994, from the assignment of residential land, and savings mobilized from the people for the purpose of buying dwelling houses, and other sources mobilizable) for the enterprises to borrow for house building.

17. The provincial/municipal People’s Committees shall base on their particular demands and conditions to reorganize and rearrange the dwelling house and residential land funds, consolidate and strengthen the forces engaged in managing dwelling houses and the real estate market.

III. STEPPING UP, AND RAISING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF, THE EXPORT AND IMPORT ACTIVITIES

1. On the basis of the strategic export and import and socio-economic development goals for the 2001-2005 period, the ministries, the provinces and centrally-run cities, and the enterprises, particularly corporations 90 and 91, shall expeditiously formulate the export programs for each year in the 2002-2005 period. These programs must be closely linked to the plannings on merchandise sources and the plannings on the construction of processing industrial parks and industrial park clusters to meet the rapid and sustainable development goal, develop new commodity items for which the branches, localities and enterprises have advantages to respond to the market demands. The Ministry of Trade shall coordinate with the concerned ministries in assisting the localities and enterprises to perform this task.

2. The provinces and cities shall set up the trade promotion support funds to support enterprises in developing outlets, with priority given to export outlets which need to be penetrated, to grant export rewards for commodity items, particularly those which the localities have potential to develop. The Ministry of Finance shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Trade in guiding the setting up of these funds on the basis of the local budgets, the over-collection rewards and other lawful financial sources for implementing the trade promotion support policies.

3. The provinces and cities shall use the local budgets in combination with mobilizing the enterprises’ resources and adopt proper mechanisms and policies to support the building of infrastructures of storehouses, yards, trade centers for product display, trade and investment counseling, and dissemination of information on domestic and foreign markets. The operations of these centers shall be organized on a self-financing basis.

4. The Ministry of Finance shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Government’s Pricing Committee, the Ministry of Trade and a number of concerned ministries in inspecting and screening the input service costs of export goods (warehousing charges); assorted charges (port, loading and unloading, maritime services, banking services, bridge and road, postal and telecommunication services, customs fee…), to propose in June 2002 to the Prime Minister the measures to reasonably reduce these costs.

5. The Ministry of Finance shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Trade and the Government’s Pricing Committee in formulating an insurance mechanism for a number of farm commodities, first of all those of big export value, then submit it to the Prime Minister in June 2002.

6. The Ministry of Finance shall assume the prime responsibility together with the Development Assistance Fund to sum up the experiences on the export credit support over the past time, coordinate with the State Bank of Vietnam in elaborating a scheme on setting up an export and import bank which shall support export goods-production loans, offer credit sale, accept deferred payment…, then submit it to the Prime Minister in September 2002.

7. The General Department of Customs shall continue perfecting and simplifying customs procedures, increase the number of goods items exempt from inspection; study and improve the mechanism of supplying accurate and timely data and information to the Ministry of Trade and the concerned ministries for analysis, evaluation and proposing of timely solutions in the export and import work.

8. In June 2002, the Ministry of Trade shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the concerned ministries in amending and supplementing the regulations on cross-border trading, including border bazaars.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the concerned ministries and localities in summing up and evaluating the implementation of the mechanisms and policies regarding border-gate economic zones so as to consider and propose additional preferential mechanisms and policies in response to the production, business and economic development requirements of these border-gate economic zones.

9. The Government shall encourage enterprises to sign product consumption contracts with farmers. The enterprises which sign such contracts right at the beginning of crops shall be given priority for participating in commercial contracts of the Government, having their financial difficulties caused by fluctuations in farm commodity prices considered and settled in the process of performing the farm product consumption contracts already signed with farmers. The Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the State Bank of Vietnam shall provide guidance for implementation in the second quarter of 2002.

10. For export and import goods subject to specialized management, the ministries shall review the management mechanisms, lists of commodity items… so as to make appropriate adjustments, strictly abide by the principles already laid down in the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 46/2001/QD-TTg of April 4, 2001 on the management of export and import goods in the 2001-2005 period.

11. To add fine art handicrafts, plastic articles and mechanical products to the list of commodity items eligible for export value-based rewards already prescribed in the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 31/2001/CT-TTg of December 13, 2001 on strengthening, and raising the efficiency of, the export and import of goods in 2002. The Ministry of Finance shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Trade in setting the reward levels in favor of high added-value and labor-intensive commodity items.

In May 2005, the Ministry of Finance shall publicize the concrete reward level with respect to each commodity item so that the enterprise can take initiative in the implementation thereof. The export reward mechanism shall apply as from January 1, 2002, even to goods exported for debt payment under commercial contracts.

12. To continue implementing the mechanism of exempting export quota fees and customs fees for goods exported until the end of December 2002, particularly those under the programs for promotion of new export goods or penetration into new markets.

13. To prioritize the import of advanced supplies, equipment and technologies in order to raise the efficiency and competitiveness of the economy and enterprises. To encourage the domestic production of raw materials, spare parts, components… as import substitutes. To reduce to the minimum the import of consumer goods. To strictly control the import of automobiles and motorcycle components.

IV. REGARDING FINANCE AND BANKING

1. The Party Committees and administrations at all levels shall focus on directing the management of 2002 State budget collection, paying attention to directing the specialized forces to coordinate with one another in intensifying the fight against the State budge undercollection, smuggling, tax evasion, particularly of export and import taxes. To concentrate efforts on inspecting, fighting and stopping false declarations at the value-added tax reimbursement stage to appropriate State budget money; to strictly handle cases of violation.

2. The Ministry of Finance shall continue improving the procedures for returning value added tax to enterprises and promulgate in June 2002 the regime to reorganize the value-added tax deduction with regard to export goods being agricultural, forestry and aquatic products; guide the collection of valued-added tax on imported fertilizers and plant protection drugs suited to their circulation characteristics; guide specifically the tax preferences applicable to the export goods processing or production by satellite enterprises as prescribed in Article 2 of the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 908/2001/QD-TTg of July 26, 2001 for prompt implementation in May 2002; study and submit a single income tax rate to the National Assembly for uniform application to foreign-invested enterprises and domestic enterprises achieving the same export turnover.

3. To enhance the thrift practice and wastefulness combat in the management of State budget spending. The heads of the budget-using units must be responsible for wrongly spent and wasteful amounts. The finance agencies and the State treasuries shall fully discharge their task of controlling the budget management and use; be responsible for the payment of wrongly-spent amounts and expenses in excess of the prescribed norms; to enhance the supervision by mass organizations…

4. The constructions and projects using the State budget capital and the public procurement by State agencies, organizations and enterprises must prioritize the procurement of home-made properties (including supplies, equipment, transport means and goods) which have technical conditions and quality similar to imported goods. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance in issuing guiding documents and controlling the implementation thereof.

5. To expand the assignment of package payrolls and managerial fundings to the administrative State agencies. The ministries and localities shall organize the implementation of the financial regimes at non-business units having incomes according to the Government’s Decree No. 10/2002/ND-CP of January 16, 2002.

6. In May 2002, the Ministry of Finance shall coordinate with the Ministry of Trade and the concerned ministries in studying and improving the spending regime in support of market development and trade promotion for submission to the Prime Minister along the direction of earmarking the entire budget source of 2002 for this purpose for the key programs, particularly those for promotion of new export goods or penetration into new markets.

7. The Ministry of Finance shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the concerned ministries and branches in studying and submitting to the Prime Minister the amendment and supplementation of land price-related matters; the regulation of incomes through land prices once the State has invested in building infrastructures; the collection of charges and fees, and relevant financial policies related to the housing development activities in order to create conditions for and encourage various economic sectors to participate in building dwelling houses. The Ministry of Construction shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the concerned ministries and branches in considering, amending and supplementing the current regulations on dwelling houses and residential land, contributing to stabilizing their prices, better and better meeting the people’s demands for better lodging along the direction that house dwellers enjoy to the utmost the State’s preferences, particularly State officials and employees, workers and low-income earners, especially the poor and inhabitants in difficulty-hit areas. Remedies and measures to severely handle those investors that abuse the State’s preferential policies for personal profits must be worked out and submitted to the Government in the second quarter of 2002.

8. To exempt the farming households in the Central Highlands provinces from paying all interests on bank loans they borrow for tending their coffee gardens in the 2001-2002 crop. These interests shall be offset by the State budget.

9. The State Bank of Vietnam shall direct commercial banks to continue lending capital for the execution of projects which the latter have evaluated and are lending the State’s development investment credits to. New projects which have been evaluated by the Development Assistance Fund shall borrow capital according to current regulations.

V. SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ISSUES

1. Hunger eradication, poverty alleviation, and employment:

a/ The ministries and localities shall focus on directing the implementation of the national target programs and Program 135, guiding and inspecting to ensure that the projects constructed with these programs’ capital sources are used efficiently for the right purposes, well realizing hunger eradication and poverty alleviation in areas still meeting with numerous difficulties or underdevelopment; efficiently implementing the programs on socio-economic development in the northern mountainous provinces, the Central Highlands provinces and the Mekong river delta provinces, and shall, at the same time, guide and inspect the construction and use of building works; consider and scrutinize those communes which have achieved the set objectives so as to remove them from the programs.

b/ The People’s Committees at all levels must work out plans and solutions and assign concrete directing tasks to their personnel so as to eradicate hunger and alleviate poverty in a sustainable manner and prevent their re-occurrence; mobilize establishments and mass organizations as well as the entire communities to render mutual assistance in order to eradicate hunger and alleviate poverty in their respective localities; direct the formulation and widespread application of efficient hunger eradication and poverty reduction models suitable to the practical conditions of each locality.

c/ The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall expeditiously finalize the planning of the network of job-training schools, then publicize it for use as a basis for implementation, devise detailed plans and concrete measures to raise the job-training quality; coordinate with the concerned ministries to submit to the Government for promulgation a decree on employment in consistence with the revised contents of the Labor Code; coordinate with the localities in reorganizing, and improving the quality of operation of employment service centers.

d/ The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall continue reorganizing the labor export work, expand markets and re-arrange the labor-export enterprises, raise the quality and competitiveness of their labor export activities, paying special attention to the training of laborers for export; promulgate strict sanctions against violations committed by labor export enterprises and contractual breaches committed by laborers during their working duration in foreign countries.

e/ The ministries shall coordinate with the provincial/municipal People’s Committees in focusing on directing the implementation of the employment support programs, prioritize the employment of laborers who are left redundant in the process of re-organizing State enterprises, laborers who have lost jobs in urbanized areas, and, at the same time, study and submit to the Government appropriate interest rates for loans lent from the National Employment Support Fund to employment generation projects.

2. Education and training, science and technology:

a/ The Ministry of Education and Training shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the localities in consolidating and promoting the illiteracy elimination and primary education universalization results; firmly deploy the universalization of junior secondary education; organize fostering courses for teachers, prepare textbooks, teaching equipment, school buildings; mobilize various funding sources and create favorable conditions for the nationwide teaching of the new programs and textbooks for grades 1 and 6 in the 2002-2003 school year; give special attention to investment in and focus on giving directions to remote, deep-lying and ethnic minority areas.

b/ The Ministry of Education and Training shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, the concerned agencies, the provinces and cities in organizing the implementation of the first stage of the 2001-2010 educational development strategy and the planning on the network of universities and colleges, which have already been approved by the Prime Minister, centering on the educational quality, enhancing the State management effect, taking specific measures to stop and handle negative phenomena in excessive extra-class teaching and learning and in enrollment, strictly dealing with breaches and negative acts.

c/ The Ministry of Education and Training shall focus on directing the initial renewal of the enrollment into universities, colleges and professional intermediate secondary schools in 2002 along the direction of ensuring equity, effectiveness, cost reduction and tension lessening for the people.

d/ The Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment shall assume the prime responsibility together with the concerned ministries and localities to renew the science and technology management mechanisms, aiming to create and develop science and technology markets, socialize scientific and technological activities, closely combine scientific research with training, production and business, directly contributing to raising the quality of products, the competitiveness of goods and the national economy; step up the pollution prevention and environmental protection in big cities, industrial parks and craft villages.

3. Cultural and social issues:

a/ The Ministry of Culture and Information shall coordinate with Vietnam Fatherland Front in directing the deployment of the movement "the entire population unite to build a cultured life style" in association with the fight against social evils, coordinate with the concerned ministries and localities in directing the organization of inspection and supervision drives, intensifying the prevention and fight against the trading in harmful cultural products and services, strictly handle acts of violation.

b/ The Ministry of Health together with the concerned ministries shall focus on finalizing a scheme on renewing the mechanisms, policies and regimes of hospital fees and medical examination and treatment for the poor, then submit it to the Prime Minister in the second quarter of 2002.

d/ The Ministry of Finance shall coordinate with the Government Commission for Organization and Personnel and the concerned ministries in supplementing and concretizing the socialization mechanisms and policies for each domain (preferential policies regarding land, capital, credit…), then submit them to the Government in the third quarter of 2002, serving as a basis for the ministries, branches and localities to make detailed plans for directing and stepping up socialization in the educational, health, cultural and sport domains; at the same time enhance the State management and raise the operational quality in every domain.

e/ The ministries and the People’s Committees at all levels must regularly inspect and supervise the observance of finance laws and regulations by the non-public establishments, promptly and strictly handle those units which have committed wrong doings in order to ensure that the socialized activities meet the set objectives.

4. Prevention and combat of traffic accidents and social evils:

a/ The Ministry of Communications and Transport and the Ministry of Public Security shall coordinate with the localities, first of all big cities, in taking resolute measures to prevent and reduce traffic accidents, enhance traffic discipline and order; rectify so as to raise the quality of the training and licensing of drivers; to expeditiously re-plan the system of infrastructures and transport means in big cities; to strictly sanction violations of the traffic safety rules.

b/ The Ministry of Public Security shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the concerned ministries in resolutely and persistently directing the prevention and combat of crimes and social evils, attacking and cracking down assorted crimes, especially organized crimes, drug-related crimes, prostitution…

c/ The People’s Committees at all levels shall, in coordination with Vietnam Fatherland Front, the Ministry of Public Security and the concerned ministries, mobilize the strengths of mass organizations and the entire community to resolutely abolish dens of social evils and narcotic retailing in each locality, especially clearly defining the responsibilities and adopting concrete mechanisms and policies for direct participation of the administrations and the forces at the grassroots level, communes, wards and street quarters. Regarding the prevention and combat of drug-related evils, the four tasks must be performed simultaneously: preventing and stemming the supplying sources; controlling spread; persistent treatment in combination with labor, job creation; and post-detoxification management.

d/ The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall direct the localities to expeditiously build detoxification and treatment centers for prostitutes and drug addicts according to the Law on Drug Prevention and Combat, ensuring the sending of the majority of drug addicts into such centers and striving to check addiction.

VI. ADMINISTRATIVE DISCIPLINE AND ORDER

Administrative discipline and order must be demonstrated in the promulgation of legal documents, in the organization of the implementation thereof, the responsibilities of the heads of administrative agencies, and the inspection and handling of violations.

1. Discipline in the promulgation of legal documents:

The following principle must be strictly complied with: The Government’s decrees detailing the implementation of laws or ordinances must be drafted and submitted together with the bills or draft ordinances. The Government’s and Prime Minister’s documents must be adequately specific for implementation right after they come into force. The issuance of circulars shall be minimized. If guiding circulars are deemed necessary, the matters in need of further guidance must be explicitly identified in the Government’s or the Prime Minister’s documents and such contents must be prepared together with the draft documents submitted to the Government or the Prime Minister. Lack of such contents shall be regarded as procedural non-compliance. The Government Office shall be entitled to return such documents and request the submitting agencies to supplement them.

The ministries, the ministerial-level agencies and the provincial/municipal People’s Committees shall strictly observe the promulgation of legal documents falling under their respective competence, putting an end to the situation where the ministries’ and ministerial-level agencies’ legal documents are inconsistent with the laws of the National Assembly, decrees of the Government and/or decisions of the Prime Minister. Legal documents of the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies and the provincial/municipal People’s Committees must be signed by the ministers and the presidents of the provincial/municipal People’s Committees respectively. To rectify and intensify the inspection and review of the issuance of documents by the attached units and subordinate authorities under their management. The agencies which issue documents at variance with the laws of the National Assembly, decrees of the Government and/or decisions of the Prime Minister must issue documents to revise or repeal the inappropriate contents and resolutely handle according to their competence the signers and issuers of such wrong documents.

2. Discipline in the implementation of legal documents:

Upon receiving documents of the superior administrative agencies, the heads of the subordinate administrative agencies must work out plans for organizing the implementation thereof, assign clearly the tasks, responsibilities and powers to each professional unit and each public employee in organizing the implementation and publicize such to organizations and citizens for work contacts and supervision of the activities of their agencies and public employees. In the course of implementation, the subordinates shall be entitled to make recommendations and report any difficulties and problems to their superiors but must still, pending the settlement thereof, perform fully and duly their assigned tasks, refrain from speaking out or performing them at variance with regulations and the direction of the superiors.

The heads of the administrative State agencies must take joint responsibility for serious law violations committed by their subordinate officials or employees when performing official duties or for letting prolonged violations of order and discipline happen in their agencies or units, thus causing negative effects and public discontent.

In coordination relations, this principle must be absolutely observed: One task shall be assigned to only one agency assuming the prime responsibility for its performance while the concerned agencies shall have the coordinating responsibility. The agency with the prime responsibility for a scheme must present fully and explicitly its views on all matters of the scheme when sending it to the concerned agencies for suggestions and take full responsibility for preparing the scheme’s contents according to the prescribed schedule.

The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies and the heads of the agencies attached to the Government shall take full responsibility to the Prime Minister for the registration and preparation of the schemes assigned to them under the Government’s working programs (annual, quarterly and monthly), considering this a central task in the consolidation of discipline and order, first of all in the operation of the State administrative apparatus at the central level.

3. Responsibilities of the heads of the administrative agencies and the inspection and handling of violations:

The heads of the administrative agencies must take direct responsibility to the people and the superior administrative agencies for administrative discipline and order in the units under their charge. To intensify the urging and inspection as well as the close direction of the subordinates by the heads of the superior administrative agencies, of State officials and employees by the leaders of agencies in implementing the undertakings and assigned tasks. The leaders of the ministries and local administrations must determinedly reduce the number and improve the content of meetings, sparing more time and efforts for field visits to personally inspect and grasp the situation and guide the subordinates to perform their tasks. For the immediate future, to concentrate on a number of fields where exist many burning issues in the settlement of citizens’ complaints and denunciations; inspection and supervision of enterprises; land and house management; and investment and capital construction.

The Prime Minister shall personally direct the settlement of a number of pressing problems in several central agencies and localities related to the responsibilities of the heads of the State administrative agencies.

According to his competence, the Prime Minister may impose severe disciplines on the heads of the agencies attached to the Government and the presidents of the provincial/municipal People’s Committees; propose the National Assembly and the State President to apply the strict handling forms to ministers and/or the heads of the ministerial-level agencies who have let serious or prolonged violations of laws or administrative discipline happen in their branches or localities, thus causing public discontents, or deliberately ignore the guiding opinions of the Prime Minister.

The ministers, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government and the presidents of the provincial/municipal People’s Committees must personally direct the definite settlement of burning cases of violation of law and administrative discipline, serious infringement upon the rights and interests of people and enterprises, disregard of national law and discipline. When conclusions on wrong doings have been made, stringent handling forms must be imposed promptly and publicized on the mass media.

4. To expeditiously deploy a number of urgent activities in order to further perfect the new institutional system, ensure measures to strengthen discipline and order in the State administrative agencies:

a/ The Ministry of Justice:

+ To submit to the Prime Minister in September 2002 the results of the general review of legal documents and work out a plan for amending, supplementing, systemizing and codifying legal documents, overcoming loopholes and contradictions susceptible to abuse or arbitrary application, ensuring the consistency and uniformity of the legal system.

+ To fully abide by the regime of inspecting the promulgation of legal documents by the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies, the provincial/municipal People’s Councils and People’s Committees; propose the Prime Minister to handle according to the latter’s competence those documents promulgated in contravention of the Constitution, laws and documents of the superior State agencies.

+ To coordinate with the Supreme People’s Court in elaborating a scheme on strengthening, and elevating the role and capability of, the Administrative Court in the settlement of administrative complaints. This job must be finished before October 2002.

b/ The Government Commission for Organization and Personnel:

+ To study and revise documents defining the functions, tasks, powers and responsibilities of the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies and the agencies attached to the Government in accordance with the provisions of the 2001 Law on Organization of the Government and the comprehensive program on State administrative reform in the 2001-2010 period, then submit them to the Government right after the National Assembly decides on the organizational structure of the Government in the next tenure, aiming to basically overcome the problem of overlapping functions and tasks, making a new change in the decentralization as well as coordination within the State administrative apparatus.

+ To coordinate with the State Inspectorate in reviewing the law provisions related to the specific tasks, powers and responsibilities of State officials and employees on duty with a view to perfecting the official duty regime; report and submit to the Prime Minister before June 30, 2002 the results of the review and propose amendments and supplements to the contents not yet prescribed or prescribed unreasonably.

+ To submit to the Government for consideration and decision documents concretizing the provisions of the Ordinance on State Officials and Employees, the Anti-Corruption Ordinance and other legal documents on the tasks, powers and responsibilities of State officials and employees on duty, especially the joint responsibilities of the heads of the agencies and units for the performance of official duties by their subordinate officials and employees, then submit them to the Government before October 2002.

c/ The Government Office shall assist the Government and the Prime Minister in overseeing the promulgation of legal documents by the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies, and the provincial/municipal administrations according to their right competence and the stipulations of the Government. To inspect the implementation of legal documents and administrative decisions of the Prime Minister at the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies and the local administrations. To supervise and inspect the implementation of the working programs of the Government, each ministry and each branch. To promptly report to the Government and the Prime Minister on violations of administrative discipline in the ministries and localities.

d/ The State Inspectorate shall elaborate a scheme on renewing and intensifying the State inspection and supervision work of the system of the State administrative apparatus in terms of institution, organizational structure and personnel, then submit it in May 2002 to the Government for consideration and decision.

e/ On the basis of their prescribed functions, tasks and competence, the ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies and the heads of the agencies attached to the Government shall immediately proceed with strengthening the apparatus, reorganizing the State inspection and supervision activities of their respective ministries or branches; selecting virtuous and professionally capable officials and employees to work as inspectors so that inspection would become truly an instrument helping them to detect and handle in a timely and strict manner violations committed by State officials and employees.

5. The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government, and the presidents of the People’s Committees at all levels must personally direct the thorough understanding and draw up plans on organizing the consolidation of, administrative discipline and order. For the immediate future, they should select a number of really burning issues and domains or a number of agencies and units showing signs of poor administrative discipline and order, then work out plans for concentrated direction on the definite settlement thereof and draw experiences for subsequent implementation; organize monthly reviews and evaluations of the implementation of this work in their respective branches and localities and report it to the Prime Minister.

This Resolution takes effect after its signing.

The ministers, the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government, and the presidents of the provincial/municipal People’s Committees shall have to organize the implementation of this Resolution.

On behalf of the Government
Prime Minister
PHAN VAN KHAI