Decision No. 1231/QD-TTg Approving the Plan for the Development of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) for the period 2011-2015

Pursuant to …;

Approving the plan for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises for the period 2011-2015

_________________________________

PRIME MINISTER

Based on the Law on the Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to Decree No. 56/2009/NĐ-CP dated June 30, 2009 of the Government on assistance for the development of small and medium enterprises;

Pursuant to Resolution No. 22/2010/NQ-CP dated May 5, 2010 of the Government on the implementation of Decree No. 56/2009/NĐ-CP dated June 30, 2009 of the Government on assistance for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises;

The Prime Minister issues this Decision on principles, criteria, and allocation standards for state budget investment capital development phase 2016-2020.

DECISION:

Article 1. Approving along with this Decision the Plan for the Development of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises for the Period 2011-2015, which includes the following main contents:

I. GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES

1. The development of small and medium-sized enterprises is a long-term, consistent, and continuous strategy in the program of action of the Government, and is a key task in the national economic development policy.

2. The State creates a legal environment and favorable mechanisms and policies for small and medium-sized enterprises of all economic sectors to develop equally and compete fairly, thereby mobilizing all resources for investment and development.

3. The development of small and medium-sized enterprises follows the principle of positive, solid, quality improvement, quantity expansion, achieving economic efficiency, protecting the environment, contributing to job creation, poverty reduction, ensuring social order and safety; developing small and medium-sized enterprises in accordance with the conditions of each region and locality, encouraging the development of rural industry and traditional craft villages; focusing on developing small and medium-sized enterprises in remote areas, difficult regions, and regions with harsh socio-economic conditions; prioritizing the development and support of small and medium-sized enterprises owned by ethnic minorities, women, people with disabilities, etc.; emphasizing support for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises investing in industries, service support, and production in fields with high competitive potential.

4. Supporting the development of small and medium-sized enterprises to achieve national goals and socio-economic development objectives.

II. OBJECTIVES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES

1. General objectives:

Accelerating the pace of development and enhancing the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises, creating a favorable and healthy investment and business environment for these enterprises to contribute increasingly to economic development, improving national competitiveness, and international economic integration.

2. Specific Objectives:

- The number of newly established small and medium-sized enterprises during the period 2011-2015 is expected to reach 350,000 enterprises; by December 31, 2015, the country will have approximately 600,000 operating enterprises;

- The export value share of the small and medium-sized enterprise sector is expected to account for 25% of the total national export value;

- Investment by the small and medium-sized enterprise sector is expected to account for 35% of the total social investment;

- The small and medium-sized enterprise sector is expected to contribute about 40% to GDP and 30% to the total state budget revenue;

- Small and medium-sized enterprises are expected to create an additional 3.5 to 4 million new jobs during the period 2011-2015.

3. Main tasks:

- Continuing to improve and ensure the stability of the legal framework, administrative reform to create a fair, transparent, and open investment and business environment for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises;

- Creating breakthroughs for small and medium-sized enterprises to access capital, enhancing the effectiveness of loan usage for these enterprises;

- Supporting the enhancement of research capabilities; technological development; promoting technology transfer and innovation to increase productivity, product quality, and competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises. Accelerating the implementation of programs to support, disseminate, and apply advanced technologies to small and medium-sized enterprises, encouraging cooperation and sharing of technology between small and medium-sized enterprises and large enterprises, foreign-invested enterprises. Encouraging small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in industry linkage programs, regional linkage, and the development of supporting industries;

- Strengthening vocational training to ensure the provision of skilled human resources for small and medium-sized enterprises. Emphasizing vocational training in high-tech industries to shift labor structure from unskilled to skilled labor, meeting the requirements of small and medium-sized enterprises in the new phase. Integrating human resource development solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises into national human resource development projects. Encouraging enterprises to establish or link with vocational training institutions in training and employment. Developing a synchronized labor market; developing a system of labor market databases and information dissemination methods to connect supply and demand for labor;

- Improving the situation of insufficient production space, strengthening environmental protection through the establishment and public disclosure of land use plans; creating conditions for the development of industrial parks and clusters with reasonable scale and land rental prices suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises; supporting the relocation of small and medium-sized enterprises causing pollution and harm to the environment in residential and urban areas to industrial parks and clusters;

- Establishing a network of information systems to support small and medium-sized enterprises to provide information on laws regulating their activities, assistance programs, and other information supporting their business operations;

- Enhancing the effectiveness of coordination in implementing activities to assist the development of small and medium-sized enterprises, strengthening the role of the Council for Promoting the Development of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises; enhancing local capacity in management, promotion, and development of small and medium-sized enterprises.

III. GROUPS OF SOLUTIONS

Group 1: Completing the legal framework regarding entry into, operation, and withdrawal from the market of enterprises.

Group 2: Supporting access to finance, credit, and enhancing the effectiveness of capital utilization for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Group 3: Supporting technological innovation and the application of new technologies in small and medium-sized enterprises.

Group 4: Developing human resources for small and medium-sized enterprises, focusing on enhancing managerial capabilities for these enterprises.

Group of Solutions 5: Promote the formation of industrial clusters and industry groups, and strengthen access to land for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Group of Solutions 6: Provide information support for SMEs and promote market expansion for SMEs.

Group of Solutions 7: Establish a system of organizations to assist in the development of SMEs.

Group of Solutions 8: Manage the implementation of the Plan for Developing SMEs.

Among these, priority will be given to specific solutions as follows:

- Establishing a Support Fund for SMEs;

- Promoting programs for technological innovation and application, focusing on developing high-tech industries to create new products, modern equipment, and machinery, specifically: The National Technological Innovation Program until 2020, The National High-Tech Development Program until 2020, The National Product Development Program until 2020, Pilot construction of business incubators, Pilot construction of comprehensive support models for SMEs in certain fields;

- Promoting economic linkages and industry cluster linkages.

The contents of the groups of solutions and the responsible agencies for their implementation are detailed in the Appendix regarding the Action Program issued together with this Decision.

IV. IMPLEMENTATION ORGANIZATION

To implement the Plan for Developing SMEs from 2011 to 2015, ministries, sectors, and localities need to integrate assistance programs for SME development with national target programs, projects, and sectoral and local target programs to effectively utilize resources.

1. The Council for Encouraging the Development of SMEs shall be responsible for:

- Through its permanent office, monitoring and supervising the implementation of the Plan by relevant ministries and sectors, advising the Prime Minister on issues arising during the implementation process;

- Recommending changes and adjustments to the Prime Minister when necessary regarding the action program and groups of solutions if they encounter difficulties, are not feasible, or fail to achieve the set objectives during the implementation process.

2. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall be responsible for compiling the plan for developing SMEs based on the plans of various sectors and localities; coordinating, monitoring, and preparing comprehensive reports on the implementation of the Plan by all ministries, sectors, and localities nationwide concerning measures to support SMEs.

3. The Ministry of Finance shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to allocate budget funds to ensure the implementation of measures under the Action Program for implementing the Plan for Developing SMEs as prescribed.

4. Ministries and sectors shall be responsible for effectively implementing the contents and groups of solutions outlined in the Plan according to their assigned functions and tasks.

5. Provincial People's Committees shall be responsible for:

- Formulating the Plan for Developing SMEs and detailed action programs for their respective provinces and cities, along with implementation timelines, coordinating with ministries and sectors to carry out SME development tasks at the local level, and allocating human resources and annual budgets to ensure the implementation of the Plan at the provincial level;

- Assigning primary responsibility to the Department of Planning and Investment, coordinating with related departments and agencies to effectively implement the Plan for Developing SMEs at the local level, promptly reporting issues and developments encountered during the implementation process to the Ministry of Planning and Investment for appropriate resolution;

- Submitting a report on the implementation of the Plan for Developing SMEs of the previous year to the Ministry of Planning and Investment by March 31 each year for consolidation and reporting as required.

Article 2. This Decision takes effect from the date of issuance.

Article 3. The Chairman of the Council for Encouraging the Development of SMEs, Ministers, Heads of Ministries equivalent to Ministries, Heads of Government Agencies, Chairmen of Provincial People's Committees directly under the Central Government are responsible for enforcing this Decision./