A more open mechanism is needed to create resources and driving forces for socio-economic development amid the safe and flexible adaptation to the pandemic.

Vietnam has marked an obvious advance in providing public services. Instead of going directly to state agencies for marriage, birth, land use right and temporary residence registration, people can now sit at home and follow procedures online.

Hanoi’s authorities have decided to remove 28 administrative procedures in the field of investment.

As mentioned in Part 1, stagnation has taken root in many fields, and personnel work, especially cadre planning and rotation, is no exception.

If public agencies consider the work of people and businesses as their own, the number of complaints about administrative procedures will decrease.

Vietnam’s judicial agencies seemingly cannot catch up with business environment reform. Two judicial indicators – contract enforcement and business bankruptcy – have not seen considerable improvement.

The Prime Minister’s working group has made outstanding milestones in the last five years, making a significant contribution to improving the business environment, boosting Vietnam’s prestige in the international area.

More than 2,800 administrative procedures have been available on the National Public Service Portal which was launched in December 2019.

The government’s 2011-2020 master program on the state administration reform has come to an end.

The National Single Window had successfully connected 200 administrative procedures of 13 relevant ministries by the end of August, in addition to processing over 3.2 million records and more than 40,000 enterprises.

The insistence of National Assembly deputies on removing the household registration system, or ho khau, as it is called by Vietnamese, shows their great determination to remove the paper that is limiting civil rights.

Ministries say they have cut 60 percent of business conditions to simplify administrative procedures that may prevent businesses from joining the market. But the figure is disputed by businesses.

Simplifying administrative procedures is critical to revitalise business after the COVID-19 pandemic.          

The Government wants the business community to provide feedback and input to help improve the National Public Service Portal, heard a conference held by the PM’s Council on Administrative Reform and the WB in Hanoi on May 19.

Administrative procedures conducted online have the same legal validity as other forms, according to the Prime Minister’s Decree No 45/2020/ND-CP.

The HCM City People’s Committee has directed government departments and the administrations of all 24 districts to increase the public services available online to limit the number of people who have to visit government offices.