Decision No. 12/2001/NQ-CP of the Government's regular meeting in October 2001

RESOLUTION

Regular Government Meeting in October 2001

During two days on October 29 and 30, 2001, the Government held its regular monthly meeting in October to discuss and adopt the following issues:

1. The Government heard the Minister of Commerce's report on the Program to Promote Exports in 2002. The Government highly appreciates the efforts and results of export activities in 2001. Although the export prices of many major goods of the country on the world market have decreased, export activities have contributed significantly to the consumption of a large quantity of domestically produced goods, especially agricultural products and seafood, thereby maintaining the GDP growth rate for 2001.

In 2002, export activities will still face many difficulties due to the continued decline in the global economy and the impact of the September 11 events in the United States. Export prices of some key agricultural and industrial products of Vietnam have not yet shown signs of recovery, and supply and demand for many goods on the world market remain unstable. The Government has set a minimum target of a 10% increase in export growth rate for 2002; during implementation, efforts should be made to achieve a higher rate.

To effectively implement the export plan for 2002, the Government assigns the Ministry of Commerce to take the lead, coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and relevant ministries and sectors to carry out the following tasks:

- Review the export capacity of all goods to develop specific programs; particularly focusing on promoting exports of product groups with competitive advantages, attracting a large number of laborers, and utilizing domestic raw materials.

- Study and supplement policies on investment, finance, credit, tax, etc., to attract and stimulate all economic components, including overseas Vietnamese communities, to participate in export activities and production of export goods.

- Supplement initial financial support policies, support for inputs in production and outputs in business operations for export goods. Develop infrastructure to serve export business activities.

- Study and stabilize export markets for strategic goods towards diversification of markets, avoiding dependence on a few markets, linking imports with exports to increase market share and export markets. Pay attention to tapping into the Chinese, Japanese, Russian, Eastern European, and American markets; maintain Western European and Middle Eastern markets; promote entry into African and Nordic markets.

- Study and rectify the activities of industry associations towards restructuring their organizational structure, functions, responsibilities, and personnel; strengthen trade promotion work and establish close relations with regional and international associations.

Assign the Ministry of Commerce to take the lead, coordinate with the Government Office and relevant ministries and sectors to incorporate the opinions of Government members, draft the Prime Minister's Directive on implementing the Program to Promote Exports in 2002, and submit it to the Prime Minister in November 2001.

2. The Government heard the Minister of Planning and Investment's presentation on the Report on Development Investment for the 2001-2005 Period.

The Government recognizes that despite the impact of the regional economic crisis and consecutive natural disasters, foreign investment decreased, the total investment capital for the national economy still increased, new production capacity grew considerably; economic and social infrastructure improved; education, healthcare, culture, society, science, and technology developed; investment in agriculture increased. Overall, we invested in the right direction and achieved significant success in mobilizing internal resources. However, there are still some shortcomings and weaknesses, particularly low investment efficiency, cumbersome investment procedures, and numerous irregularities in bidding processes.

In the 2001-2005 period, investment must aim to achieve the goals of the Ninth National Party Congress Resolution and ensure effectiveness. It is necessary to pay special attention to diversifying investment sources, maximizing capital from the private sector; correctly determine investment directions and make breakthroughs; state investment should focus on building infrastructure, education, healthcare, social welfare, science and technology, and investment in poor, remote, and border areas; implement strong decentralization to ministries, sectors, and localities based on overall planning, minimize spontaneous investments causing waste and inefficiency; pay attention to investment aimed at building a reasonable economic structure.

Assign the Ministry of Planning and Investment to take the lead, coordinate with the Government Office and relevant ministries and sectors to incorporate the opinions of Government members, complete the report, and supplement it to the Report on Socio-Economic Development Plan for the 2001-2005 Period to be submitted to the Tenth National Assembly's tenth session, while drafting the Government's Action Program to implement the five-year development investment plan for 2001-2005, to be submitted to the Prime Minister in November 2001.

3. At this meeting, the Steering Committee for Enterprise Reform and Development presented the draft Action Program of the Government to implement the Resolution of the Third Plenary Session of the Ninth Central Committee on Continuing to Reorganize, Reform, Develop, and Enhance the Efficiency of State-Owned Enterprises.

The Government agrees with the contents of the Program and also supplements many urgent tasks that can be carried out immediately. Assign the Steering Committee for Enterprise Reform and Development to take the lead, coordinate with the Government Office and related agencies, incorporate the opinions of Government members, supplement and complete the draft Action Program of the Government to implement the Resolution of the Third Plenary Session of the Ninth Central Committee on Continuing to Reorganize, Reform, Develop, and Enhance the Efficiency of State-Owned Enterprises. At the same time, draft the Prime Minister's Directive requiring ministries, sectors, and localities to implement the Government's Action Program, to be submitted to the Prime Minister in November 2001.

4. The Government heard the Minister of Fisheries' submission to the Government on the Draft Law on Fisheries; and the Minister, Head of the Government Office's report summarizing the opinions of Government members on the Draft Law.

Direct the Ministry of Fisheries to lead, coordinate with the Government Office, the Ministry of Justice, and relevant agencies to incorporate the opinions of government members for amending, supplementing, and perfecting the Draft Law, and submit it to the Prime Minister for consideration, then to the National Assembly.

5. The Government heard the Head of the Government Price Management Board present the Government's Report on the Draft Ordinance on Prices; listened to the Minister, Head of the Government Office report on the summary of opinions from government members regarding the Draft Ordinance.

Direct the Government Price Management Board to lead, coordinate with the Government Office, the Ministry of Justice, and relevant agencies to incorporate the opinions of government members, complete the Draft Ordinance above, and submit it to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision to submit to the Standing Committee of the National Assembly.

6. The Government heard the Minister of Construction present the Government's Report on the draft Decree on Vietnamese citizens residing abroad purchasing housing in Vietnam; listened to the Minister, Head of the Government Office report on the summary of opinions from government members regarding the draft Decree.

Direct the Ministry of Construction to lead, coordinate with the Government Office, the Ministry of Justice, and relevant agencies to incorporate the opinions of government members, supplement, and complete the draft Decree above, and submit it to the Prime Minister for issuance.

7. At the meeting, the State Inspectorate presented the Report on inspection work to resolve complaints and denunciations in the third quarter of 2001; the Ministry of Planning and Investment presented the Report on the socio-economic situation in October and the first ten months of 2001; the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development presented the Report on flood conditions in the Mekong Delta in 2001 and the guidance on coping with floods. The Government agreed to approve these reports.

In the first ten months of 2001, despite achieving some progress such as significant budget revenue, maintaining high growth rates in industrial production, increased dynamism in service activities, notable advancements in cultural-social areas, especially poverty reduction and job creation efforts..., many sectors still faced difficulties, particularly in increasing export turnover, disbursement of investment capital for basic construction projects, issues of security and social safety... For the remaining months of 2001, the Government requests ministries, sectors, and localities to review their work programs, intensify leadership and management efforts, and implement specific measures to fully exploit the country's advantages, striving with great effort to achieve the set economic growth targets./.