The Government’s regular meeting – October 2012

RESOLUTION

The Government’s regular meeting – October 2012

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The Government on October 28 convened its regular meeting for September 2012 to discuss and decide the following issues:

The report on the socio-economic situation in October and in the past ten months of 2012 and the implementation of Resolution No. 01/NQ-CP, submitted by the Minister of Planning and Investment.

The Government agreed that the socio-economic situation in October and in the recent ten months of 2012 made positive achievements and went on the right track. Solutions to curb inflation and stabilize the macro-economy have proved to be effective; the Consumption Price Index (CPI) in October only increased 0.85% against in September; the interest rate reduced; credit mechanism actively changed in service of priority areas; exchange rate stabilized; and foreign reserves increased. Export turnover maintained a high growth rate. The industrial production index in October rose 5.8% against September and inventories decreased. Production of agriculture, forestry and aquaculture has been maintained. The service sector saw high rise in growth compared to the same period in 2011. The tourism, transportation, postal service and telecommunication sectors witnessed stable development. The social welfare, culture, education, health and job creation have been focused and made progress. The politic stability, social security and social order and national defense were guaranteed; traffic accidents decreased. Administrative reform, settlement of complaints and denunciations and anti-corruption works have received due attention and diplomatic work has gained remarkable successes.

However, there remain difficulties and challenges to the socio-economic performance; the macro-economy has not really been sustainable when potential high inflation was awaiting. Problems arising in credit growth and bad debts settlements of the banking system have not been solved. Export growth mainly depended on the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) sector; the reduced import of equipments and materials caused a slow recovery in production and purchasing power of the domestic market. A number of businesses got dissolved and their scale lessened. Total investment for social development and the State Budget collection were lower than the preset goals. The livelihood of a group of people faced a lot of difficulties. Food hygiene and safety were still limited. Social evils and criminals in some areas remained high.

The Government asked ministries, agencies and localities to take drastic and synchronous measures which were proposed at the beginning of the year and strive for successful realization of the 2012 socio-economic development targets, focusing on the following tasks:

- The State Bank of Viet Nam continues to regulate the monetary policy in a flexible manner in line with macro balances and in combination with the fiscal policy to assist enterprises in accessing to bank loans without letting the recurrence of high inflation, give priority to building social houses for low-income people. The SBV must have timely and appropriate measures to reinforce the healthy operation of the banking system and deal with those performing poorly; increase foreign reserves to meet the production and people’s demands for foreign currencies in the remaining months of 2012; coordinate with other ministries and agencies to complete the bad debt management plan and report it to the Government. 

- The Ministry of Finance works with other ministries, agencies and localities to implement a reasonable fiscal policy in close and effective combination with the monetary and credit policies; make plans for budget collection and spending and the State Budget management for 2013;  tighten spending management and ensure the State Budget balance. Officials of ministries, agencies and localities are required to practice thrift, fight waste and minimize abroad working visits; reduce unscheduled spending, focus on completing State Budget collection; guarantee scheduled spending and deal with arisen demands to overcome consequences of natural calamities and floods; maintain the overspending level proposed by the National Assembly.

- The Ministry of Planning and Investment coordinates with ministries, agencies and localities to continue speeding up disbursement to budget-funded projects. Capital for national target programs is allowed to be disbursed until March 31, 2013. The Ministry accelerates compensation work and site clearance; enhances measures to mobilize and disburse official development assistance (ODA) and FDI; coordinates with relevant ministries and agencies to timely address barriers against foreign-funded high-tech or high value-added projects; coordinates with the Ministry of Education and Training and the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs to ensure labor force for these projects. All levels, agencies closely review and check procedures concerning capital construction to decide early planned capital allocation for 2013.

- Ministries, agencies and localities closely coordinate with each other in managing the market and prices; guarantee the balance of supply and demand of goods and services, especially the food price at the end of the year and during the Lunar New Year festival; hasten the implementation of the PM’s Directions on strengthening management, operation and price stabilization in the last months of 2012; strictly deal with speculation and price hikes.

- The Ministry of Health is to establish a roadmap to adjust medical fees to be applied in 2013; direct localities to launch the roadmap and enhance popularization of new policies on medical services to gain consensus in society and contribute to controlling inflation.

- The Ministry of Industry and Trade hosts and cooperate with relevant ministries and agencies to realize effectively trade promotion solutions, push up export, improve information channeling network, find and propose measures in response to other nations’ technical barriers, control and inspect import goods, prevent trade frauds, fake and unqualified goods; guarantee the balance of goods production and people’s needs; launch measures synchronously to reduce inventories.

- The Ministry of Construction coordinates with related ministries, agencies and localities to check and classify urban and housing projects; cancel or adjust mechanisms designed for construction projects and sizes of apartments in the direction of increasing social houses models to meet people’s demand and affordability.

- The Ministry of Finance, the State Bank of Viet Nam, Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment cooperate with ministries and agencies to propose related solutions to reduce business income tax and extend the deadline for paying land use for businesses involved in building houses; issue policies for low-income people to afford houses so as to unclog the real estate market and accelerate the purchase of stockpiled building materials. The Ministry of Transport makes plans to increase the number of concrete roads.

- Ministries, agencies and localities enhance measures to unbind difficulties against production and business activities in accordance with the Government’s Resolution 13/NQ-CP; continue with the policies on creating favorable conditions for production and business, encourage the development of advantageous fields such as agriculture, processing, auxiliary industries and value-added services; check and streamline administrative procedures, create favorable conditions for production, business and services; realize the restructuring of assigned fields; focus on crucial missions; improve macro-forecasting abilities to increase validity and effectiveness of Government’s guidance. 

- The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development hosts and cooperates with other ministries, agencies and localities to implement effectively policies assisting breeding and aquaculture to guarantee the supply of food for the local market, especially at the end of the year; shape plans to prevent natural calamities and cattle disease epidemics; surmount the consequences of storm No. 8 and help people stabilize production and livelihood.

-  Social welfare policies need to be deployed synchronously in disadvantaged areas for poor people, people rendered services to the nation, beneficiaries of social policies and ethnic minorities; follows the situations and provides assistance for those struggling against food shortage in disadvantaged areas and areas affected by natural calamities; realize effectively the Party and State’s guidance and resolutions in the fields of national defense, security, national sovereignty, political security, social order and safety; focuses on dealing with complaints and denunciations and combating waste and corruption.

- The Ministry of Information and Communications spurs the dissemination of macro-economic policies and the Government’s performance, contributing to the realization of the targets and tasks set forth in the Government’s Resolutions. The Cabinet members positively provide mass media with information of guideline, policies and solutions relating to their competent fields to build public confidence and consensus.   

- The Cabinet members speed up the preparation and submission of projects, resolve the backlog of documents guiding the enforcement of effective laws and ordinances, launches effectively Resolutions and Conclusions of the fourth, fifth and sixth Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, prepare, explain and discuss the socio-economic situations and answer questions raised by the National Assembly’s deputies at the fourth session of the 13th National Assembly.

- The Cabinet members give comments on the Project of Orientations to increase the effectiveness of attracting, using and managing Foreign Direct Investment till 2020, which is submitted by the Minister of Planning and Investment. The Ministry of Planning and Investment complete the draft of the Resolution to submit to the Government for approval at the Government’s regular meeting in November 2012.

2. The Government discussed and gave comments on the Draft of the Decree to assign tasks to realize rights, responsibilities and duties of the State on the State-owned businesses and State investment into businesses, submitted by the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

The Government assigned the Ministry of Planning and Investment to work with the Ministry of Justice and other related agencies to receive comments from the Cabinet members to complete the draft of the Decree toward improving the effectiveness of the State management and the owners’ management in State-owned businesses and State capital in businesses, then report to the Prime Minister for issuance./.