Circular No. 33/2019/TT-BCT stipulates the System of Criteria for the National Brand Program of Vietnam

CIRCULAR

Regulations on the System of Criteria for the Vietnam National Brand Program

Pursuant to the Law on Foreign Trade Management dated June 12, 2017;

Pursuant to Decree No. 98/2017/NĐ-CP dated August 18, 2017, of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Industry and Trade;

Pursuant to Decision No. 30/2019/QD-TTg dated October 8, 2019 of the Prime Minister promulgating the Regulation on the construction, management, and implementation of the Vietnam National Brand Program;

At the proposal of the Director of the Department of Trade Promotion;

The Minister of Industry and Trade issues this Circular amending and supplementing some articles of Circular No.

The Minister of Industry and Trade issues this Circular to regulate the System of Criteria for the Vietnam National Brand Program.

PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular stipulates the System of Criteria for the Vietnam National Brand Program, including:

1. Criteria for building, reviewing, and approving proposals under the Vietnam National Brand Program (the Program).

2. Criteria for selecting products that achieve the Vietnam National Brand.

Article 2. Applicability

This Circular applies to units responsible for implementing proposals under the Program, Program management agencies, and related agencies, organizations, enterprises, and individuals.

Chapter II
SYSTEM OF CRITERIA FOR THE VIETNAM NATIONAL BRAND PROGRAM

Section 1
CRITERIA FOR BUILDING, REVIEWING, AND APPROVING PROPOSALS UNDER THE VIETNAM NATIONAL BRAND PROGRAM

Article 3. Criteria for building proposals under the Vietnam National Brand Program

1. Proposals must comply with the provisions of Clause 1, Clause 2, and Clause 3 of Article 16 of Decree No. 28/2018/ND-CP dated March 1, 2018 of the Government detailing the Law on Management of Foreign Trade regarding certain measures to develop foreign trade.

2. Proposals must meet one of the following objectives:

a) Enhancing societal awareness of the role of brands in production, business, and investment activities;

b) Improving enterprises' capacity to build, develop, and manage brands to meet Program criteria;

c) Promoting the Vietnam National Brand in conjunction with promoting the brand of products achieving the Vietnam National Brand.

Article 4. Criteria for reviewing proposals under the Program

1. The criteria for reviewing proposals under the Program include:

a) Criterion 1: Necessity;

b) Criterion 2: Objectives;

c) Criterion 3: Content;

d) Criterion 4: Implementation plan;

đ) Criterion 5: Implementation schedule and progress;

e) Criterion 6: Budget estimate;

g) Criterion 7: Competence of the leading unit;

h) Criterion 8: Expected results, anticipated risks, and mitigation measures.

2. The criteria specified in Clause 1 of this Article are detailed in Appendix 1 attached to this Circular.

Article 5. Principles for reviewing and approving proposals

1. Proposals are reviewed through a scoring method. The evaluation scale is 100 points. The evaluation scale is specifically determined for each assessment indicator within the criteria set forth in Appendix 1 attached to this Circular.

2. A proposal qualifies for approval if it achieves a total review score of 80 points or higher, with each criterion specified in Clause 1 of Article 4 achieving at least 60% of the points. 3. Based on the annual budget allocation for the Program announced by the Ministry of Finance, the Minister of Industry and Trade decides to approve proposals according to the principle that the total actual expenditure on all approved proposals does not exceed the allocated budget.

CRITERIA FOR REGISTERING AND SELECTING PRODUCTS THAT ACHIEVE THE VIETNAM NATIONAL BRAND

Section 2
Article 6. Criteria for registering products to be selected for the Vietnam National Brand

Article 6. Criteria for registering products to be selected for the Vietnam National Brand

1. Criteria for registered products

a) Products and goods produced in accordance with Vietnamese laws;

b) Products and goods protected by intellectual property rights in Vietnam.

2. Criteria for enterprises with registered products

a) Enterprises established in accordance with Vietnamese laws;

b) Owners of intellectual property protection certificates for registered products;

c) Have been operating continuously for at least two years prior to the selection year;

d) Comply with legal regulations on production, investment, business operations, environmental protection, labor, social responsibility, financial obligations, taxes, and other obligations to the state budget.

Article 7. Criteria for selecting products to achieve the Vietnam National Brand

1. The criteria for selecting products to achieve the Vietnam National Brand include:

a) Criterion 1: Quality;

b) Criterion 2: Innovation;

c) Criterion 3: Pioneering Capacity.

2. The criteria specified in Clause 1 of this Article are detailed in Appendix 2 issued together with this Circular.

Article 8. Principles for Selecting Products to Achieve the Vietnam National Brand

1. The selection of products to achieve the Vietnam National Brand shall be conducted through a scoring method. The evaluation scale is 1,000 points. The specific evaluation scale is determined for each indicator within the criteria set forth in Appendix 2 issued together with this Circular.

2. The total score required for a product to achieve the Vietnam National Brand is 650 points or more, and each criterion specified in Clause 1 of Article 7 must reach 60% or more.

Chapter III
IMPLEMENTATION

Article 9. Responsibilities of Units under the Ministry of Industry and Trade

1. The Department of Trade Promotion is the main unit responsible for managing and implementing the Program and is responsible for:

a) Guiding the development of proposals, receiving, reviewing, and submitting to the Minister for approval;

b) Compiling and preparing the budget for managing and implementing the Program and incorporating it into the overall budget of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, submitting it to the competent authority in accordance with the State Budget Law;

c) Managing and using the Program's financial resources according to current financial regulations;

d) Signing contracts to implement projects under the Program with the leading units and settling accounts for support funds according to signed contracts; directly implementing projects under the Program led by the Department of Trade Promotion; the contents of contracts signed with leading units implementing the projects are regulated in Article 12 of Decree No. 28/2018/NĐ-CP dated March 1, 2018 of the Government detailing the Law on Foreign Trade Management regarding certain measures to develop foreign trade;

e) Receiving and processing administrative procedures for selecting products to achieve the Vietnam National Brand in accordance with Article 8 of the Regulation on Building, Managing, and Implementing the Vietnam National Brand Program issued together with Decision No. 30/2019/QĐ-TTg dated October 8, 2019 of the Prime Minister issuing the Regulation on Building, Managing, and Implementing the Vietnam National Brand Program;

f) Before December 20th each year, compiling, evaluating, and reporting to the Ministry of Industry and Trade to report to the Prime Minister on the implementation of the Program;

g) Leading and coordinating with relevant agencies to inspect, supervise the implementation of projects under the Program, and compliance with Program regulations by participating enterprises;

h) Organizing guidance, implementation, and inspection of the implementation of this Circular.

2. The Financial Affairs and Enterprise Reform Department is responsible for coordinating with the Department of Trade Promotion to compile, allocate, and settle the Program's budget according to regulations.

3. The Market Management General Department is responsible for coordinating with the Department of Trade Promotion to inspect, supervise the implementation of this Circular in accordance with Decision No. 30/2019/QĐ-TTg dated October 8, 2019 of the Prime Minister issuing the Regulation on Building, Managing, and Implementing the Vietnam National Brand Program.

4. Other units under the Ministry of Industry and Trade are responsible for coordinating with the Department of Trade Promotion and project leading units to effectively implement the Program.

Article 10. Responsibilities of the leading unit of the project and enterprises participating in the selection of products to be awarded the National Brand of Vietnam

Clause 1. The leading unit of the project shall be responsible for compiling the needs of organizations, enterprises, and industry associations to propose, develop, and coordinate the implementation of projects according to the criteria set forth in this Circular and the provisions of Decision No. 30/2019/QĐ-TTg dated October 8, 2019, issued by the Prime Minister on the Regulations for the development, management, and implementation of the National Brand Program of Vietnam.

Clause 2. Enterprises participating in the selection of products to be awarded the National Brand of Vietnam shall be responsible for implementing the provisions of this Circular and Decision No. 30/2019/QĐ-TTg dated October 8, 2019, issued by the Prime Minister on the Regulations for the development, management, and implementation of the National Brand Program of Vietnam.

Article 11. Effective Date

Clause 1. This Circular shall take effect from January 8, 2019.

Clause 2. During the implementation process, if there are difficulties or obstacles, it is recommended that agencies, organizations, and individuals promptly report them to the Ministry of Industry and Trade for research and resolution./.