The Government’s regular meeting- July 2013

RESOLUTION

The Government’s regular meeting- July 2013

 The Government on July 30-31 convened its regular meeting to discuss and decide the following issues:

 1. Reports on socio-economic performance in July and the first seven months, implementation of Resolution No. 01/NQ-CP and Resolution No. 02/NQ-CP which were presented by the Minister of Planning and Investment.   

The Government agreed that: in July and the first seven months, the socio-economy continued to progress positively; moved in the right direction; relatively achieved comprehensive outcomes and laid a foundation for the fulfillment of the 2013 preset targets. The macro-economy was stable and the inflation rates were restrained. Credit balance was improved. Exports maintained the growth pace higher than the preset target; imports especially machines, equipments, and raw materials of business and production were improved. The policies on tax exemptions, cuts, and cancellations helped extricate business and production difficulties. Industrial production, especially processing and manufacturing evolved proactively. Agricultural production was relatively stabilized. Service sector developed fairly. ODA and FDI disbursements were improved. Social security and welfare were guaranteed; grateful and memory activities of the Day for Wonded Soldiers and Martyrs were conducted thoughtfully and educated tradition; culture, healthcare, science and technology, education and job generation were paid due attention. The administrative reform and settlement of complaints and denunciations, anti-corruption were among priority areas. Politics and society were stable; national defense was strengthened; social order was maintained. Foreign affairs were promoted. 

  Nevetheless, there remain difficulties and challenges to the socio-economic performance including unstable macro-economy, implicit risks of rising inflation rates, low credit growth in comparision with targets, high rates of non-performing loans, budget collection lower than schedule, difficult production and business, low aggregate demand in the economy, low industrial production index against the same period, numerous difficulties of prices and markets for key agricultural exports, complicated traffic accidents and crimes, unexpected natural disasters and epidemics. The realization of Government’s instructions and management and issued mechanisms and policies remained slow and in poor quality.    

The Government asks ministries, agencies and localities to persistently pursue the preset goals and norms which were set at the beginning of the year especially the macro-economic stabilization, inflation curbing, solutions to business and production difficulties in accordance with Resolution No. 01/NQ-CP and Resolution No. 02/NQ-CP, Government’s regular resolutions and direction and management documents of the Government and the PM, focusing on the following key issues:    

- Promptly concretize and drastically and fruitfully implement programs and action plans on sectoral restructuring in line with the ratified Master plan on economic restructuring, especially in SOEs, credit organizations and public investment.  

- The State Bank of Viet Nam continues to manage interest rates in accordance with inflation reality, create favorable ways for enterprises to access to capital sources; develop credit growth without letting resurgence of non-performing debts; lead the capital flows towards production, prioritized fields, available markets and competitive products; support capital approach of defered payments for cement producers to build rural roads; effectively implement the housing loan policy; proactively handle non-performing loans; rushly put the Viet Nam Asset Management Company (VAMC) into operation; closely control the exchange rates and the gold market.          

- The Ministry of Finance flexibly regulates the fiscal policy in line with the monetary policy; strictly controls market prices; chairs, collaborates with other ministries, agencies and localities to effectively implement Prime Minister’s Directive No. 09/CT-TTg, dated May 24, 2013 on strengthening the direction and management in implementing State budget – financial tasks in 201. The Ministry strengthens budget collection in accurate and full manner; prevents frauds, tax avoidance, loss of revenues, stagnated tax collection; closely manages budget spending; exercises thrift practice; carefully reviews and assesses the implementation of budget collection and spending tasks. It actively formulates plans on state budget balance for 2013; reports to the PM in early August in 2013; works with the Ministry of Transport to adjust transport fees in appropriate manner; guilds the realization of policy in which People’s Committees at the communial level are allowed to spend the road maintenance fee from motorbikes in building rural roads in favor of the construction of new rural areas.  

- The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MoPI) takes prime responsibility and coordinates with other ministries, agencies and localities to push up investment; enable social investment especially public-private partnership (PPP); speed up ODA and FDI disbursement process; promptly finalize committed procedures of ODA corresponding capital in line with donors’ requirements; accelerate the progress of implementation and disbursement of fundamental construction capital, especially important projects which spend state budget and Government’s bonds in 2013; submit plans for allocating planned capital in advance to projects which are urgent or would be early completed; and seek corresponding capital for ODA projects. The MoPI cooperates with the Ministry of Justice, other ministries, agencies and localities contributed for the Government to issue a resolution on administrative reform in the realization of investment and business projects.     

- The Ministry of Industry and Trade actively deploys programs on domestic market stimulation; improves trade promotion activities; consolidates and expands export markets; extricates difficulties for the processing industry; collaborates with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to support peasants in production, consumption and export of agro-fishery products; speeds up the fight against smuggling and trade frauds especially illegal ore shipments by sea; directs the Domestic Market Regulation Team to timely keep close watch on and respond to the reality in order to protect the domestic market; deploys the market price roadmaps for electricity, petrol and coal in the spirits of openness and transparency; offers reasonable electricity for poor households; controls safety levels of hydro-electricity projects in the storm season and proactively prevent disaster risks.

- The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development implements the Project on agricultural reform; concretizes restructuring tasks in every sector and product; renovates organization and management methods to duplicate models of effective and high-quality in combination with value chain from production to consumption; extends the deadline for purchasing temporary storage rice without letting prices fall and affect incomes of peasants; works with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to accelerate negotiations, resolve difficulties and expand agricultural export markets; keeps a close watch on and direct the task of flood prevention and deal with complicated developments of natural disasters.

- The Ministry of Transport supervises progress of key transport projects; closely work with relevant localities to conduct site clearance. Provincial and municipal People’s committees drastically accelerate site clearance work and ensure progress of key projects. The Ministry of Transport, related ministries and agencies work with the Ha Noi People’s Committee to supervise and resolve difficulties on site clearance and ensure rate of progress for key transport projects.     

- The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment investigates, supervises and resolves obstacles for localities to speed up progress of granting land use rights certificates in line with the National Assembly’s Resolution; works with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Transport to rushly review and synthetize the demands for paddy field reclamation, propose solutions which pave favorable conditions for localities to shift paddy cultivation purpose to ensure progress of national key transport projects.

- The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, ministries, agencies and localities push up tourism promotion activities; ensure order and security, environmental protection and civilized lifestyle in tourism sites; develop tourism products and service; attract foreign tourists to Viet Nam; raise tourism revenues. 

- The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs continues to synchronously and effectively conduct social welfare polices, national target programs on poverty reduction and employment; chairs and works with the Committee for Ethnic Minorities to review and provide specific and practical supports for poor and far-reaching ethnic minorities to access to production tools and stabilize their lives; collaborate with the Ministry of National Defense to review, instruct and resolve policy regulations on wounded soldiers and people with merits who lost documents of recognition in line with the regulations.   

- The Ministry of Health enhances preventive healthcare work; reviews vaccination usage; investigates and early exposes reasons of newborn deaths after vaccination; improves medical check-up quality; accelerates the realization of the Project on reducing hospital overcrowding; directs adjustments to healthcare service fees in appropriate and cautious manner.               

- The Government Inspectorate focuses on definitely resolving stagnant, long-lasting and new complaint cases; prevent corruption; strengthens supervision, assessment and settlement after investigation; submits a decree on settlement after investigation.    

- The Ministry of Home Affairs works with other ministries, agencies and localities to speed up the realization of the Public Administration Reform Master Program for 2011-2020 period; conducts Directive 07/CT-TTg, dated May 22, 2013 to ensure quality of the yearly plans on administrative reform; put in place the reform of public service regime in line with PM’s Decision 1557/QD-TTg, dated October 18, 2012; directs and supervises ministries and localities to promptly employment positions, structure of public servants, strictly supervises personnel and organization apparatus.        

- The Ministry of Justice chairs and works with the Ministry of Home Affairs, other ministries, agencies and localities to realize PM’s Directive 15/CT-TTg, dated July 5, 2013; strengthen supervision of administrative procedures on building and issuance process of legal documents.  

- Ministries and agencies positively supply accurate and timely information; disseminate orientations, policies, solutions and management at ministerial and sectoral levels. The Ministry of Information and Communications enhances the dissemination of orthodox information to create transparency and orient public opinion; works with relevant agencies to prevent and settle the cases making use of freedom and democracy to disseminate wrong information and damage the reputation of agencies, organizations, individuals and interests of the people; and submits the Project on Viet Nam Posts and Telecommunications Group restructuring in early August, 2013.  

2. Report on management, granting mineral exploitation licenses and measures to reinforce management, presented by the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment.

Over the past years, especially after the Mineral Law took effect, the Government has positively instructed ministries, agencies and localities to pay attention to the tasks of management and granting of mineral exploitation. However, in spite of initial outcomes, numerous limits and shortcoming needs to be settled. 

The Government agreed with the groups of tasks and solutions proposed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and requested that: 

 - Provincial and municipal People’s Committees conducts the proposals of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment following the investigation of mineral operation and granting of mineral exploitation licenses in localities in 2011-2012, reports of the PM and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment on settlement of infringements before December 30, 2013. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment directs and supervises the settlements of the above issue. Competent agencies prosecute and punish negative and corruption cases.

- The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment promptly finalizes legal documents which guide the implementation of the 2010 Mineral Law; introduces procedures on granting of mineral exploitation licenses in transparent manner; selects, investigates, explores and assess reserves and sets up appropriate exploitation plans in large-scale and high-demand mines.

- The Ministry of Industry and Trade finalizes to early introduce a plan on exploration, exploitation, processing and usage of titanium, iron, copper, lead, zinc, manganese; considers adjustments and supplements to planning of other minerals; restructures mineral processing zones in concentrated and modern manner; realizes the policy on prohibition of raw minerals export; works with relevant agencies to prevent illegal import of minerals especially titanium, iron and coal.          

- The Ministry of Construction, the Ministry of natural Resources and Environment jointly research raw materials for brick production; encourages technology of non-burnt brick; limits and eliminates manufacture of burnt bricks which are made from soil and cause environmental pollution and cultivated land losses; requests localities to closely supervise exploitation and export of salt sand in river month.    

3. Project on the issuance of Government bonds in the international capital market, presented by the Ministry of Finance.

The Government debated and agreed the necessity to issue a single resolution on the issue.

4. The Project on comprehensively reforming education and training to serve the national industrialization and modernization in the context when the country is pursuing the socialist-oriented market and boosting international integration, presented by the Minister of Education and Training.  

The Government asked ministries and ministerial agencies, Government’s agencies to comment on the draft project; pay attention to assess the reality of education and training, the opinion on fundamental and comprehensive reform, goals, specific tasks and solutions; give opinions on issues which have to consult the Party’s Central Committee; and send feedbacks to the Ministry of Education and Training before August 10, 2013 to synthetize and finalize the project, report the PM, Party Civil Affairs Committees, the Government before submitting it to the Party’s Central Committee.   

5. Report on composing draft laws and ordinances in the first half and tasks for the second half of 2013; report on building and issuance of documents which stipulate enforcement of laws and ordinances in the first six months of 2013, presented by the Minister of Justice and the Minster-Chairman of the Office of the Government.

In the first half, the Government, ministries and agencies were positive in institutional building, properly conducted the law and ordinance building program; and focused on raising quality of legal document making and issuance. The Government and the PM directed synchronous measures to speed up the progress of law making especially stagnant documents. However, in spite of the achievements, there were some shortcomings in which many adjustments must be made to the program on law, ordinance and decree making; quality of some projects and draft projects failed to meet requirements; the issuance of guiding documents for laws and ordinances remained slow; the number of stagnant documents were high, especially guiding documents of the Law on handling of administrative violations.      

The Government asked its members to drastically conduct the Program on building of laws, ordinances and guiding documents of laws and ordinances. Every ministry and agency assigns a leader to direct the program on law making, completes the contingent of public officials who are in charge of institutional making; composes, submits legal documents on schedule and in good quality; closely cooperates with the Ministry of Justice, the Office of the Government and related agencies, respects for public comments and social feedbacks during the process of law making.  

The Ministry of Justice chairs and works with the Office of Government to supervise and investigate ministries and agencies and submit quarterly reports to the Government on the building and issuance of legal documents including stagnant ones. The Office of the Government coordinates with the Ministry of Justice to monthly publicize the reality of guiding documents of ministries and ministerial-level agencies at the Viet Nam Government Portal.

 6. The Law on Viet Nam People’s Army Officers (amended); the Law on People’s Public Security Forces (amended) presented by the Minister of National Defense and the Minister of Public Security. 

 The Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Public Security chair and work with the Ministry of Justice, the Office of the Government and related agencies to collect comments of the Government’s members to finalize the amended bills. The Minister of National Defense and the Minister of Public Security, on behalf of the PM and the Government present the bill to the National Assembly.  

7. The Public Investment Law, the Law on Construction (amended) presented by the Minister of Planning and Investment and the Minister of Construction. 

The Ministry of Justice chairs and cooperates with the Office of the Government, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Finance to collect comments of the Government’s members, continue to review and approve scope of enforcement of the two bills; ensure conformity and correlation without overlapping among them and with the Law on State Budget, the Investment Law, the Law on Public Debt Management, the Law on Management and Usage of State Investment, the Bidding Law. Accordingly, 

 - The Public Investment Law regulates management of state budget capital for socio-economic development; resolves scattered, decentralized, wasted, inefficient investments and effectively manage public investment process, contributes to accelerate the public investment restructuring; inherits appropriate regulations on public investment; supplements suitable regulations in line with the reality and develop the opinions of PM’s Directive 1792/CT-TTg, dated October 15, on strengthening investment management from state budget capital and Government bond capital. The law stipulates investment plans (medium and annual terms), principles of capital distribution, conditions for investment licenses, authority of investment decision and responsibilities of people who decide investment. The Law on Construction regulates sequences, procedures on formulating pre-feasibility reports, pre-feasibility reports, provisions on making, evaluating and ratifying construction projects in public investment in construction field. 

 - The Construction Draft Law (amended) stipulates construction investment activities from planning, making pre-feasibility reports; pre-feasibility report; making, evaluating, ratifying construction investment projects to evaluating, designing, constructing, accepting, handing over, insuring, maintaining construction projects and is applicable to all construction investment projects which spend all sources of capital. The amended draft law has to clearly stipulate management of work quality and construction costs (economic norms – technique, unit prices, construction estimate, total investment), project safety, construction, progress and specific factors of construction investment activities; clearly define authorities and responsibilities of state management agencies and investment subjects including investment deciders, investors, project management boards, consulting contractors and implementation contractors. The Law on Public Investment stipulates authorities and responsibilities of deciders of state budget projects.       

 On the above basis, the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Construction finalize the Public Investment Law and the Construction Law and report to the PM./.