Decision No. 236/2006/QĐ-TTg Approving the Five-Year Plan for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises (2006-2010)

DECISION OF THE PRIME MINISTER

Approving the Five-Year Small and Medium Enterprise Development Plan (2006-2010)

PRIME MINISTER

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

Pursuant to the Government Decree No. 90/2001/NĐ-CP dated November 23, 2001 on assistance for the development of small and medium enterprises;

Considering the proposal of the Minister of Planning and Investment.­

DECISION:

Article 1. Approves the Five-Year Small and Medium Enterprise Development Plan (2006-2010), with the main contents as follows:

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

1. Consistently implement the policy of developing a multi-sector economy. All economic sectors operating under the law are important components of the socialist-oriented market economy, coexisting and developing over the long term, cooperating and competing fairly.

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

3. Develop small and medium enterprises according to the principle of positive, solid growth, improving quality, increasing quantity, achieving economic efficiency, contributing to creating more jobs, eliminating poverty, ensuring social order and safety; linking the development of small and medium enterprises with national goals and socio-economic development objectives suitable to the conditions of each region and locality, encouraging the development of rural industries and traditional craft villages; focusing on developing small and medium enterprises in remote, mountainous areas, and areas with difficult socio-economic conditions; prioritizing the development and support of small and medium enterprises owned by ethnic minorities, women, people with disabilities, etc.; focusing on developing small and medium enterprises investing in certain fields with high competitiveness.

4. The State's assistance activities gradually shift from direct support to indirect support to enhance the capacity of small and medium enterprises.

5. Link business operations with environmental protection and ensure social order and safety.

6. Strengthen the awareness of all levels of government regarding the position and role of small and medium enterprises in socio-economic development.

II. OBJECTIVES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

1. General objectives:

Accelerate the pace of development of small and medium enterprises, create a fair competitive environment, enhance the country's competitive capacity, and increase the contribution of small and medium enterprises to economic growth.

2. Specific objectives:

a) The number of newly established small and medium enterprises is approximately 320,000 (increasing by about 22% annually);

b) The growth rate of newly established small and medium enterprises in difficult provinces is 15% by 2010;

c) The proportion of direct participation in exports reaches 3-6% of the total number of small and medium enterprises;

d) Create an additional 2.7 million new job positions during the period 2006-2010;

e) Add 165,000 workers trained in technical skills working at small and medium enterprises.

III. MAIN TASKS

1. Continue to improve and ensure the stability of the legal framework, streamline administrative procedures and financial policies to create a fair, transparent, and conducive environment for small and medium enterprises to develop.

2. Assess the impact of policies on small and medium enterprises, regularly organize dialogues between state agencies and small and medium enterprises, thereby guiding and answering urgent requirements for business development.

3. Adjust the tax system appropriately to encourage enterprise start-ups, reform accounting systems, and reporting forms towards simplification, encouraging enterprises to self-declare and pay taxes, thus facilitating enterprises while preventing tax evasion.

4. Improve the situation of insufficient production space, strengthen environmental protection through planning and publicizing land use plans; create conditions for the development of industrial parks and clusters with reasonable scale and land rental prices suitable for small and medium enterprises; support the relocation of small and medium enterprises causing pollution and harm to the environment in residential and urban areas to industrial parks and clusters.

5. Amend and supplement regulations to accelerate the establishment of credit guarantee funds for small and medium enterprises at localities; encourage the development of various types of banks, including commercial joint-stock banks specializing in serving small and medium enterprises, including the development of leasing finance services and applying unsecured loan methods for small and medium enterprises with feasible and effective projects to meet their investment and business capital needs.

6. Accelerate the implementation of programs to support the dissemination and application of advanced technology and techniques to small and medium enterprises, enhancing technical management capabilities; encourage cooperation and sharing of technology among enterprises of different sizes; effectively develop research programs with practical applicability; study, amend, supplement, and promulgate technical standards, quality management systems, and quality certification systems compatible with international standards. Encourage small and medium enterprises to participate in industry linkage programs, regional linkage programs, and the development of supporting industries.

7. Accelerate the construction of an enterprise information system to have a database for evaluating the status of small and medium enterprises, serving policy planning and providing information for enterprise production and business activities.

Implement publicity, education, dissemination of business experience, business spirit, and lawful wealth creation to all target groups. Study pilot programs to incorporate business knowledge into secondary, university, college, vocational school, and vocational training school curricula to promote entrepreneurial spirit, develop business culture, and gain societal support for lawful business operations.

8. Develop the business development service market (both supply and demand sides), improve the legal environment for business development services activities, focusing on quality management of such services. Encourage associations to provide business development services; actively implement programs to assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs); participate in building institutions, policies, and assistance programs for SMEs to enhance the role of support from associations and truly represent the legitimate interests of SMEs.

9. Enhance the effectiveness of coordination in implementing assistance activities for SMEs, strengthen the role of the Council for Promoting SME Development; enhance local capacity in managing, promoting, and developing SMEs.

IV. GROUPS OF SOLUTIONS

1. Group of Solutions 1: Simplify regulations to facilitate business registration, market entry, and business activities.

2. Group of Solutions 2: Facilitate access to land and production sites for SMEs.

3. Group of Solutions 3: Facilitate access to capital sources for SMEs, prioritizing export-oriented businesses and those with high value-added products.

4. Group of Solutions 4: Support programs aimed at enhancing capabilities and improving competitiveness of SMEs.

5. Group of Solutions 5: Develop human resources to meet the requirements for SME development during the period 2006-2010.

6. Group of Solutions 6: Create a favorable social psychological environment for the SME sector.

7. Group of Solutions 7: Manage the implementation of the SME Development Plan for the period 2006-2010.

The contents of the groups of solutions and the agencies responsible for their implementation are stipulated in the Appendix attached to this Decision.

V. IMPLEMENTATION

To implement the SME Development Plan for the five-year period 2006-2010, ministries, sectors, and localities need to integrate SME development assistance programs with national target programs, projects, and sectoral target programs to effectively utilize resources.

At the Central level:

1. The Council for Promoting SME Development coordinates throughout the process of implementing the plan, evaluates the implementation of the plan by the agencies responsible for implementation at ministries, sectors, and localities. The tasks of the Council for Promoting SME Development include:

a) Monitoring the agencies responsible for implementing the plan and reporting issues arising during the implementation of the plan;

b) Recommending the Prime Minister to make changes and adjustments when necessary regarding the action program and groups of solutions if they encounter difficulties, are not feasible, or fail to achieve the set goals during implementation;

c) Establishing working sub-groups to implement the SME Development Plan, headed by representatives of the agencies responsible for implementation. These sub-groups consist of representatives from relevant functional agencies responsible for implementing the groups of solutions and specific solutions according to the content of each group of solutions.

2. The Ministry of Finance takes the lead, coordinating with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to compile and develop budget plans to ensure the implementation of solutions under the Action Program for SME Development as prescribed.

3. Ministries and sectors are responsible for preparing and implementing each solution according to the schedule.

At provincial level:

1. Provincial People's Committees are responsible for developing SME development plans, action plans, and implementation schedules; coordinating with ministries and sectors to carry out SME development tasks at the local level; allocating human resources and annual budgets to ensure implementation of the plan at the provincial level.

2. Establish a Provincial Steering Committee for Implementing the SME Development Plan under the Provincial People's Committee, headed by a Deputy Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee. Members of the Provincial Steering Committee for Implementing the SME Development Plan include representatives from relevant departments and business associations in the province. The Director of the Department of Planning and Investment serves as the Permanent Secretary.

3. The tasks of the Provincial Steering Committee for Implementing the SME Development Plan and the Permanent Secretary are defined by the Provincial People's Committee.

4. Submit annual reports on the implementation of the SME Development Plan to the Ministry of Planning and Investment for consolidation and reporting to the Prime Minister.

Article 2.This Decision shall take effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

Article 3. The Chairman of the Council for Promoting SME Development, Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government-affiliated agencies, Chairmen of provincial and centrally-administered city People's Committees are responsible for enforcing this Decision./.