Decision No. 169/2006/QD-TTg on investment and procurement of information technology products for agencies and organizations using state budget funds.

Pursuant to …;

Regulations on investment and procurement of information technology products for agencies, organizations, and units using state budget funds

PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001.

Pursuant to the Law on Thrift and Anti-Waste No. 48/2005/QH11 dated November 29, 2005.

Pursuant to Directive No. 58/CT-TW dated October 17, 2000 of the Politburo on "accelerating the application and development of information technology to serve the cause of industrialization and modernization."

Considering the proposal of the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications.

Pursuant to …;

Article 1. Scope and Objectives

This Decision stipulates regulations on investment and procurement of information technology products for agencies, organizations, and units using state budget funds.

The regulated subjects of this Decision are all agencies, organizations, units, state-owned enterprises (hereinafter referred to as agencies and organizations) that use state budget funds or funds with origins from the state budget to invest in and procure information technology.

Article 2. Regulations on investment and procurement of information technology products

1. When agencies and organizations use state budget funds, funds with origins from the state budget, or preferential loans from state investment and development credit (hereinafter referred to as state budget funds) to invest in and procure projects applying and developing information technology (hereinafter referred to as information technology projects), they must prioritize purchasing and using domestically produced information technology products (hereinafter referred to as information technology products) as specified in Article 3 of this Decision.

2. In cases where the product needed to be purchased is a type already produced domestically but due to specific technical requirements of the project only imported products can meet these needs, the project's leading agency must submit detailed documentation explaining these specific requirements to relevant specialized agencies for their opinions and must obtain approval through review by the competent ministry-level agency, agency equivalent to a ministry, government agency, provincial People's Committee, or municipal People's Committee directly under the central government. The heads of these agencies shall bear direct responsibility for the decision to permit the procurement of imported products.

3. When agencies and units build and implement information technology application projects, they must ensure a balanced, reasonable, and integrated relationship between software and hardware procurement; they must prioritize purchasing and investing in software solutions and digital content products to ensure effective and economical information technology applications.

Strictly comply with laws on intellectual property rights in the procurement and use of information technology products, especially software and digital content.

Prioritize investment and procurement of open-source software products, particularly those provided by domestic enterprises.

The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance to quickly develop regulations and investment standards for information technology procurement suitable for the characteristics of information technology application and development projects in Vietnam, particularly software projects.

Article 3. Criteria for prioritized information technology products.

1. In this Decision, information technology products shall be understood to include:

- Software products;

- Digital content products;

- Computer hardware products;

- Specialized and consumer electronic products;

- Information technology service products (consulting, design, training, technology transfer, maintenance services related to information technology and other related services).

2. Information technology products that are prioritized for procurement under this Decision must satisfy the following criteria:

a) They are information technology products that meet at least one of the following requirements:

- Designed, researched, and manufactured entirely within the territory of Vietnam;

- Assembled, modified, upgraded, or localized within the territory of Vietnam, with these activities generating high added value or significant practical benefits politically and socially;

- Information technology services provided by organizations and enterprises of Vietnam or foreign organizations and enterprises operating in Vietnam with investment permits;

Open-source software products exploited and supplied by organizations and enterprises of Vietnam or foreign enterprises operating in Vietnam with investment permits.

b) They have assured quality, meeting the requirements for application and development of information technology in state agencies, organizations, and state-owned enterprises, as well as other requirements stipulated by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications.

3. The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and relevant ministries and sectors to establish detailed criteria based on the provisions of this Article, and simultaneously develop, issue, and periodically update the list of prioritized information technology products as a basis for implementing this Decision.

Article 4. Selection of contractors for information technology project tenders.

1. Tenders for information technology projects of state agencies and units funded by the state budget shall only be conducted internationally if domestic information technology enterprises are unable to undertake them, or can undertake them but at excessively high costs compared to foreign contractors, or if no domestic contractor meets the tender requirements. Domestic information technology agencies and enterprises may form consortia or partnerships to jointly bid for information technology projects.

2. For international bidding information technology projects, foreign contractors must form consortia with Vietnamese contractors and commit to allocating a minimum of 30% of the total tender value to Vietnamese contractors. Priority will be given to contractors that allocate a higher percentage of work value to the Vietnamese side.

3. When evaluating tenders for information technology projects funded by the state budget, there must be a mechanism to prioritize contractors that propose using more domestic information technology products. Centralized procurement of information technology products is encouraged, while sporadic procurement is restricted.

4. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications to provide detailed guidance on the implementation of the provisions of this Article.

Article 5. Financial mechanisms to promote the application and development of information technology

1. Information technology application projects using state budget funds during implementation shall be considered and prioritized for investment capital according to the urgency of each project; the provision of capital shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the State Budget Law.

2. The Posts and Telecommunications Ministry shall coordinate with the Planning and Investment Ministry, the Finance Ministry, and relevant ministries and sectors to establish regulations on managing investment and construction of information technology projects; at the same time, they shall study shortening the depreciation period for information technology products in line with the rapid technological changes of these products.

3. The Finance Ministry shall take the lead and coordinate with the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry to provide detailed guidance on implementing the provisions of this Article.

Article 6. Implementation Organization

1. The Posts and Telecommunications Ministry shall take the lead and coordinate with the Finance Ministry, the Planning and Investment Ministry, and relevant ministries and sectors to develop and issue circulars providing detailed guidance on implementing this Decision.

2. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-affiliated agencies, provincial People's Committees under central cities, within their respective authorities, shall promulgate specific regulations on prioritizing the purchase of domestically produced information technology products in information technology projects funded by loans, foreign aid, and other sources.

3. Ministries, sectors, and localities shall submit written reports to the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry on the implementation of this Decision by the fourth quarter of each year for the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry to compile and report to the Prime Minister.

Article 7. Implementation Provisions

This Decision shall take effect fifteen days from the date of publication in the Official Gazette.
Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-affiliated agencies, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees under central cities, and entities specified in Article 1 are responsible for implementing this Decision./.