Directive No. 14/2006/CT-BTM on the implementation of the overall plan for the development of e-commerce for the period 2006-2010

DIRECTIVE

REGARDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OVERALL PLAN FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF ELECTRONIC COMMERCE

PERIOD 2006 - 2010

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To organize and implement the Prime Minister's Decision No. 222/2005/QD-TTg dated September 15, 2005 on approving the overall plan for the development of electronic commerce for the period 2006-2010, the Minister of Trade issues the following directive:

1. Promote propaganda and training in electronic commerce

a) The Department of Electronic Commerce shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Organization and Cadres, the Departments of Trade, Departments of Trade and Tourism (collectively referred to as the Departments of Trade), and related units to regularly organize training and education on the benefits and business skills of electronic commerce for economic management cadres at all levels and disseminate relevant legal normative documents concerning electronic commerce. Training and education should be conducted in various forms to achieve the highest effectiveness.

b) The Department of Trade Promotion and the Trade Information Center shall organize training on the skills required to participate in electronic commerce for enterprises in conjunction with their specialized activities.

c) The Central School of Trade and colleges and secondary schools under the Ministry of Trade shall supplement the curriculum with training content on electronic commerce, focusing on compiling teaching materials and textbooks and building a team of lecturers with theoretical and practical expertise in electronic commerce.

d) The Trade Magazine, the Trade Newspaper, the Vietnam Economic Newspaper, and the Trade Television (Department of Trade Promotion) shall intensify propaganda and reporting on the development of electronic commerce in Vietnam, highlighting successful examples of enterprise application of electronic commerce.

2. Improve the legal system for electronic commerce

a) The Department of Electronic Commerce shall take the lead and coordinate with the Legal Department and related units to develop detailed regulatory documents to guide the implementation of the Decree on electronic commerce, particularly regarding the recognition of the legal validity of electronic documents, and other related regulatory documents.

b) The Competition Management Department shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Electronic Commerce and related units to develop regulatory documents on unfair competition prevention and consumer protection in electronic commerce.

c) The Legal Department shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Electronic Commerce to annually review the current legal document system and compare it with international treaties to develop plans for supplementation, amendment, or proposals for supplementation and amendment of regulatory documents related to electronic commerce.

3. Provide online trade public services

a) The Office of the Ministry shall take the lead and coordinate with units under the Ministry and the Department of Electronic Commerce to publicly announce administrative procedures on the Ministry of Trade’s electronic information website.

b) The Department of Import and Export, the Department of Domestic Market Policy, the Department of Planning and Investment, the Competition Management Department, the Department of Trade Promotion, the Textile and Garment Board, and the Departments of Trade shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Electronic Commerce and the Office of the Ministry to develop plans to provide online trade public services. In the years 2007 and 2008, priority shall be given to providing online trade public services related to import and export, domestic markets, investment, and textiles under the responsibility of the Ministry of Trade.

c) The Department of Planning and Investment shall take the lead and coordinate with the Office of the Ministry and the project sponsors using development capital and units responsible for state budget funds to publish tender notices on the electronic information website of the government agency responsible for bidding in accordance with the law and on the Ministry of Trade’s electronic information website.

4. Develop supporting technologies for electronic commerce

a) The Department of Electronic Commerce shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Planning and Investment and the Institute of Trade Research to study and issue policies and measures to encourage investment and transfer advanced technology to serve electronic commerce activities.

b) The Department of Electronic Commerce shall take the lead and coordinate with the Institute of Trade Research and the Trade Information Center to issue common standards used in electronic commerce, particularly the ebXML electronic data interchange standard; support the pilot implementation of some industry e-commerce networks with significant economic scale.

5. Organize the enforcement of laws related to electronic commerce

a) The Market Management Department shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Electronic Commerce and related units to handle violations and assist competent authorities in resolving disputes related to electronic commerce.

b) The Competition Management Department shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Electronic Commerce and related units to enforce laws on unfair competition prevention and consumer protection related to electronic commerce.

c) The Department of Planning and Investment shall take the lead and coordinate with the Department of Electronic Commerce to implement activities related to statistics on electronic commerce.

6. Strengthen international cooperation in electronic commerce

a) The Department of Electronic Commerce shall take the lead and coordinate with the Legal Department to participate in electronic commerce activities of international organizations such as UNCITRAL, UN/CEFACT, AFACT, and study proposals for joining international treaties and standards on electronic commerce.

b) The Department of Electronic Commerce shall take the lead and coordinate with the Multilateral Trade Policy Department to participate in electronic commerce and information technology application activities of multilateral economic and trade organizations such as the WTO, APEC, ASEM, ASEAN, and UNCTAD.

c) The Department of Electronic Commerce shall take the lead and coordinate with foreign market departments and Vietnamese trade offices abroad to strengthen bilateral cooperation in electronic commerce, directly supporting bilateral trade between Vietnam and other countries, prioritizing support for exports.

7. Implement state management of electronic commerce in provinces and centrally administered cities

a) The Departments of Commerce shall develop plans for the development of e-commerce in their respective localities from now until 2010 and annual plans, prepare budget estimates to submit to the People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities in accordance with the Law on State Budgets, and implement their state management functions regarding e-commerce in their localities in accordance with Circular Jointly Issued by the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Home Affairs No. 08/2005/TTLT/BTM-BNV dated April 8, 2005. 08/2005/TTLT/BTM-BNV April 8, 2005.

b) The Departments of Commerce shall cooperate with units under the Ministry of Commerce in training, education, and dissemination activities related to laws on e-commerce, unfair competition, and consumer protection in e-commerce activities.

8. Supporting enterprises in applying e-commerce

a) Units under the Ministry of Commerce, the Departments of Commerce, and Vietnamese trade missions abroad shall actively support enterprises in participating in e-commerce, helping them reduce transaction costs and expand markets.

b) Trade missions and the Departments of Commerce shall strengthen support for enterprises to participate in e-commerce projects implemented by units of the Ministry of Commerce.

9. Research on e-commerce

The Institute of Trade shall intensify research activities on e-commerce to better support the unified state management function of the Ministry of Commerce over e-commerce.

10. Implementation organization

The E-commerce Department shall be responsible for guiding, inspecting, and urging the implementation of this Directive; coordinating with relevant agencies and units to promptly resolve any issues arising during the implementation process and reporting the results to the Minister.

ANNEX

SUMMARY OF ASSIGNMENTS FOR UNITS IMPLEMENTING THE OVERALL PLAN FOR DEVELOPING E-COMMERCE FROM 2006 TO 2010
(Annexed to Directive No. 14/2006/CT-BTM dated December 6, 2006 issued by the Minister of Commerce)