Joint Circular No. 34/2011/TTLT-BTTTT-BNG guides the coordination in implementing the Regulation on State Management of Foreign Information issued together with Decision No. 79/2010/QĐ-TTg dated November 30, 2010 of the Prime Minister.

JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines for coordinating the implementation of the State Management Regulation on foreign information issued together with

Decision No. 79/2010/QĐ-TTg dated November 30, 2010 of the Government Prime Minister

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BASED ON THE GOVERNMENT DECREE NO. 187/2007/NĐ-CP OF DECEMBER 25, 2007 ON THE FUNCTIONS, TASKS, POWERS, AND ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE MINISTRY OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS;

Based on Decree No. 15/2008/NĐ-CP dated February 4, 2008, issued by the Government, stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;

Pursuant to Decision No. 79/2010/QĐ-TTg dated November 30, 2010 of the Government Prime Minister promulgating the State Management Regulation on foreign information;

The Ministry of Information and Communications and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hereby jointly stipulate the implementation of certain provisions of the State Management Regulation on foreign information issued together with Decision No. 79/2010/QĐ-TTg dated November 30, 2010 of the Government Prime Minister as follows:

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

1. This Circular guides the coordination in performing tasks in the contents of work prescribed in Article 7, Article 8 of the State Management Regulation on foreign information issued together with Decision No. 79/2010/QĐ-TTg dated November 30, 2010 of

2. All agencies, units under the Ministry of Information and Communications, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and organizations and individuals participating in foreign information management and activities within the scope of application of this Circular.

Article 2. Providing and guiding foreign information for domestic news agencies and press

1. The Ministry of Information and Communications shall be responsible for providing and guiding foreign information for domestic news agencies and press through the following forms:

a) Regular press conferences;

b) Press briefings;

c) Direct provision;

d) The Ministry of Information and Communications' electronic information portal; Foreign information website;

đ) Training and refresher courses on foreign information;

e) Plans and programs for foreign information activities;

g) Other forms.

2. The Ministry of Information and Communications shall have the responsibility to compile, analyze, and evaluate information about Vietnam across all fields, by topic, or in response to significant domestic and international events to provide and guide foreign information for domestic news agencies and press.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall coordinate with relevant ministries, sectors, and localities to guide domestic press in reporting on the foreign activities of state leaders and to cooperate in guiding reports on international situations and domestic news related to foreign affairs.

4. Ministries, sectors, and localities within their respective functions of state management shall promptly, fully, and accurately provide information to the Ministry of Information and Communications for compilation and provision of foreign information and guidance for the press; they shall send representatives or spokespersons to attend regular press conferences organized by the Ministry of Information and Communications to directly provide and guide foreign information for domestic news agencies and press at such press conferences when requested by the Ministry of Information and Communications.

Article 3. Building the network planning for overseas representative offices of Vietnamese news agencies and press

1. Based on practical foreign information activities and legal regulations, the Ministry of Information and Communications shall take the lead in building and submitting

2. To have a basis for building the network planning, the Ministry of Information and Communications shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and relevant agencies to organize surveys and studies on the current status and needs for the network of overseas representative offices of Vietnamese news agencies and press, including: identifying key areas for collecting and disseminating foreign information; reviewing the current status of the network of overseas representative offices of Vietnamese news agencies and press; assessing the capacity of Vietnamese news agencies and press that wish to establish representative offices abroad.

3. Vietnamese news agencies and press wishing to establish representative offices abroad must comply with the network planning for overseas representative offices of Vietnamese news agencies and press issued by the Government Prime Minister and follow the reporting system as prescribed by the law on press.

Article 4. Implementation of overseas foreign information activities

1. Implementation of overseas foreign information activities must be based on the Party's, State's, and Government's foreign information activity plans and programs. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall take the lead in implementing overseas foreign information activities.

2. Ministries, sectors, and localities have the responsibility to report to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs before organizing events abroad and to inform the Ministry of Information and Communications for coordination in implementing foreign information content.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Vietnamese representative agencies abroad have the responsibility to closely coordinate and create favorable conditions for ministries, sectors, and localities to organize overseas foreign information activities well; they shall take the lead in coordinating with ministries, sectors, and localities to provide information and publications for propaganda purposes so that Vietnamese representative agencies abroad can effectively fulfill their foreign information tasks.

4. Vietnamese news agencies and press organizations have the responsibility to direct their representative offices abroad to participate in overseas foreign information activities according to the orientation of the Ministry of Information and Communications and the guidance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; through Vietnamese representative agencies abroad, they shall grasp foreign affairs activities to proactively participate and promote Vietnam's image to the world and the Vietnamese community abroad.

Article 5. Organization of international press conferences and preparation of content for interviews with State and Government leaders for foreign journalists

1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies to organize and prepare content for interviews with State and Government leaders for foreign journalists.

2. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies to organize international press conferences of senior State and Government leaders both domestically and abroad.

3. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall organize regular press conferences of the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

4. Ministries, sectors, and localities have the responsibility to promptly provide the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with information related to their functional scope upon request of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to prepare interview content for foreign journalists and international press conferences of senior State and Government leaders.

Article 6. Management and issuance of permits for foreign journalists' press activities in Vietnam

1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall take the lead in managing and issuing permits for foreign journalists' press activities in Vietnam in accordance with current regulations; creating favorable conditions for ministries, sectors, and localities to invite foreign journalists to report, write articles, and produce promotional stories about Vietnam.

2. Ministries, sectors, and localities shall cooperate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to manage foreign journalists' activities within their functional scope. Periodically or urgently, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities (hereinafter referred to as Provincial People's Committees) shall report on foreign journalists' press activities in their locality to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for consolidation, and concurrently send to the Ministry of Information and Communications for general monitoring.

Article 7. Building and implementing plans for external information activities; compiling and evaluating the implementation of external information work

1. The Ministry of Information and Communications shall be responsible for compiling the external information plans of ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, and provincial People's Committees to advise the Government on issuing the External Information Plan and Program for a five-year period, aligned with the five-year socio-economic development plan of the Government; building and submitting

2. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, and provincial People's Committees shall base their annual external information activities and budget estimates on the long-term external information activity plan of the Government, and submit these to the Ministry of Information and Communications for compilation. The deadline for submitting the budget estimate report is before July 1st each year for compilation and submission to the Ministry of Finance.

3. Annually, based on the state budget allocated, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, and provincial People's Committees must ensure funding for state management of external information and the implementation of external information activities.

Article 8. Responsibility for Implementation

1. The Ministry of Information and Communications assigns the Department of External Information to be responsible for advising and assisting the Minister in performing state management functions related to external information and guiding provincial Information and Communications Departments to implement such functions.

2. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs assigns the Press and Information Department to be responsible for advising and assisting the Minister in implementing coordination contents in external information work and guiding overseas representative offices of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Provincial Departments of Foreign Affairs, or Provincial People's Committee Offices (for provinces without a Provincial Department of Foreign Affairs) to organize implementation.

3. The Director of the Provincial Information and Communications Department shall take the lead, promptly exchange information, and closely coordinate with the Director of the Provincial Department of Foreign Affairs, the Head of the Provincial People's Committee Office, and leaders of local departments and sectors to advise the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee on directing external information work at the local level; organizing mid-term and final evaluations of external information work within the province, formulating the next year's external information work plan, and recommending awards for individuals and groups with outstanding achievements in external information work.

Article 9. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from January 9, 2012.

2. During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties, relevant state management agencies and organizations and individuals participating in external information activities shall promptly reflect them to the Ministry of Information and Communications (through the Department of External Information).