Laws of Vietnam

In the recent past, the market and trade activities in our country have seen active steps of development. There have been more and more commodities which have also become more and more diversified, and their quality has also improved constantly, thus meeting the consumption demand of the people. However, the management of measurement and the quality of goods circulated on the market has not yet been given adequate attention. The trading in faked goods, fraud in measurement and quality of goods, casualness and dishonesty in advertizing activities tend to increase and has become serious at times and in some places, thus not only causing damage to the interests and even the health of the consumers but also harming the prestige and economic interests of the serious and honest business people, and leaving bad consequences to production, life and the sound development of the economy in our country .

The cause of this situation must be found first of all in the fact that the ministries, branches and localities, which are assigned to manage measurement and the quality of goods, have not fully realized their role and responsibility in the organization and coordination of actions aimed at performing seriously and efficiently the management of measurement and quality of goods circulated on the market .

On the other hand, the current stipulations of the State on measurement and goods quality either no longer conform with, or do not meet, the demand and requirements of the process of economic development and goods circulation. They have been slow to be readjusted, amended or replaced in order to conform with the characteristics and demands of the new mechanism.

The organizational apparatus and the force engaged in the control and inspection of measurement and quality of goods in circulation on the market are both deficient and weak, operating with little efficiency, thus failing to meet the need and demand of the process of development of commodities and the market in the change to the market economy.

With a view to quickly overcoming the weaknesses in the management of measurement and quality of goods in circulation, especially those which have direct impact on the health of consumers such as food, foodstuffs, beverages, refreshments... and to bring into order at an early date the trading activities in general, and the management of quality and measurement of goods in circulation in particular, and make them conform with law, thus helping to promote and broaden trading activities in our country and making them civilized and healthy, the Prime Minister instructs the following :

- To preside over and coordinate with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment in revising the current regulations on the management of measurement and quality of goods circulated on the market in order to amend them, or to submit to the Government for issuing new regulations conformable to the characteristics of the situation and the trend of development of the market in our country, in order to raise the efficiency of the management of the measurement and quality of goods circulated on the market.

- To study in order to work out and issue a regulation on the product label and trade-marks so that all enterprises shall have their own trade-marks when undertaking a business; all commodities (products) circulated on the market must have a label listing the basic qualifications of the product, to serve as basis for the consumers to make their choice as well as for the control and inspection by the specialized agencies with regard to the observance of the stipulations on measurement and quality of goods.

- To coordinate with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment to revise and rectify the activities of the organizations and agencies assigned to expertize or recognize the quality of goods in order to make them more compact and lighter in apparatus and simpler in administrative procedures, and work more effectively, thus meeting in time the needs of the new managerial mechanism. To clearly delineate the function of research and elaboration of the norms of goods quality with the expertise of the quality of goods according to standards, in order to adopt appropriate policies and measures of management, and putting an end to the present situation in which the same agency or unit elaborates the standards for quality of goods while also expertizing and recognizing this quality. This aims to ensure independence, objectivity and integrity in the expertise and control of the measurement and quality of goods. The expertise of the goods quality being a commercial service, the units engaged in this work must register their business and submit to the regulation of law as any other commercial service.

- To work out a plan and measures to strengthen the material and technical bases, to provide professional training for the units and individuals engaged in market management so that they may have the necessary conditions and capacity to perform their function of controlling and inspecting the measurement and goods quality. To coordinate with the other branches and the localities to carry out strictly and seriously the control and inspection of the market, and ensure order and discipline in commercial activities throughout the country.

- To revise the system of Vietnamese standards in order to readjust, amend or supplement those standards which have been issued but which are no longer suitable and cannot meet the need of the new situation. To study, elaborate and issue standards on minimum obligatory quality (apart from the standards on sanitation and safety) to be applied to a number of important products, and those products which, when put into use, shall directly affect the health or the environment such as food, foodstuffs, beverages, refreshments... so that they may serve as basis for the control of the quality of goods produced in the country as well as goods imported into our country .

- To coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and the concerned branches in studying and submitting to the Government for issuing regulatory measures in order to raise the efficiency of the State protection over the forms of industrial property ownership already registered, and render the activities in industrial property ownership really effective in the fight against the production and trading of faked goods.

- To increase the control and inspection of the activities of the organizations and units assigned to expertise the production of instruments of measurement of quality in order to ensure that all activities and products of quality measurement produced shall conform with the standards and regulations under the unified management of the State. To coordinate with the market management force to detect, control and handle the acts of violation regarding the production, circulation and use of the means of measurement, at the same time to regularly strengthen the capacity and technical equipment of the system of measurement expertise agencies to enable them to meet the demands in the management of goods quality of the State.

- To coordinate with the Ministry of Trade in guiding the implementation of Decree 194-CP of December 31, 1994 concerning the activities of commercial advertisement, especially those related to measurement and quality of goods in order to ensure that the commercial advertisements abide by law, and be truthful and accurate.

4. The specialized Ministries, the People's Committees of the provinces and cities directly under the Central Government:

- Basing themselves on the areas and scope of their management the specialized Ministries shall, together with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, define the unified standards for goods quality under the jurisdiction of the specialized Ministries, and shall take responsibility before the Government for the measurement and quality concerning the goods put into circulation on the market and under the management of the specialized Ministries.

- The People's Committees of the provinces and cities directly under the central Government shall be responsible before the Government for the organization of the implementation of the regulations of the State in their localities concerning control and inspection work in the fight against the production and trading of faked goods, against fraud in measurement and quality of goods circulated on the market. They must place this work on the same level as the fight against speculation, smuggling and trading in banned goods and all other acts of illegal business, so as to work out a plan and active measures to conduct on a permanent and continuous basis right in their localities. They shall also have to coordinate with the other branches and localities in well implementing the regulations on the management of measurement and quality of goods on a national scale.

For the Prime Minister

Deputy Prime Minister

PHAN VAN KHAI