Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung

They also talked about the socio-economic development plan, State budget estimate and allocation in 2020.

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung reported that despite facing an array of difficulties, the country has reaped positive socio-economic outcomes in many aspects in 2019 with macroeconomic stability and gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 6.8 percent.

Relating to public concern about the slow disbursement of public investment capital, Chairwoman of the NA Committee for Justice Le Thi Nga suggested revising laws on land, investment, planning, construction and housing to find out the reason behind this matter.

NA Vice Chairman Do Ba Ty said the positive performance in realising socio-economic development goals in 2019 has brought Vietnam into the group of countries posting high growth in the region and the world.

He said it is necessary to clarify the causes of outstanding problems and assess the impacts of the regional and global situation on Vietnam’s socio-economic development in order to do better in the following years.

Ty particularly mentioned the effects caused by the US-China trade tensions and the situation in the East Sea.

More attention should be paid to climate change adaptation and environmental pollution reduction as well as public debt and overspending, he said.

Chairman of the NA Committee for Culture, Education, Youth, Adolescents and Children Phan Thanh Binh said the competition among power economies and the situation in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), including the East Sea issues, will exert significant impacts on Vietnam.

Furthermore, the Fourth Industrial Revolution will influence all social areas, including information explosion, he added.

NA Standing Committee convenes 38th meeting

NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan (centre) speaks at the opening ceremony of the 38th meeting of the NA Standing Committee on October 14

The National Assembly Standing Committee convened the 38th meeting on October 14 with several draft laws and important reports on its agenda.

In opening the meeting, NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan said three draft laws – the revised Law on Enterprises, the revised Investment Law, and the law on amendments and supplements to a number of articles of the Law on Management and Use of Weapons, Explosives and Supporting Tools – and a draft resolution on piloting the removal of ward-level People’s Councils in Hanoi’s urban districts and towns will be tabled for discussion at this meeting.

The NA Standing Committee is scheduled to give opinions on reports on socio-economic and State budget performance, the feasibility research report of the Long Thanh airport (first phase), a draft resolution approving the Supplementary Treaty to the 1985 Treaty on the Delimitation of the National Boundary and the 2005 Supplementary Treaty between Vietnam and Cambodia, and the Protocol on the Demarcation and Marker Planting of the Land Boundary between Vietnam and Cambodia.

Reports on voters’ petitions and the settlement of complaints and denunciation in 2019, and on preparations for the 8th session of the NA will be considered.

The NA Standing Committee will consider and make decision on the appointment of ambassadors to other countries, the adjustment of administrative boundaries in three provinces of Hai Duong, Thanh Hoa and Bac Ninh, and several other important issues at the meeting, which will last until October 17.

Following the opening, the NA heard and discussed a report of the Presidium of the Vietnam Fatherland Front’s Central Committee on petitions of voters and the public.

Based on the petitions, the Presidium of the VFF’s Central Committee presented five proposals, asking the NA, the Government and localities to give priority to investment in infrastructure and socio-economic development in remote and isolated areas, ethnic minority areas and areas frequently hit by natural disasters and climate change.

The VFF urged ministers, sectors and local administrations to strictly implement the Government’s instruction in disbursing public investment capital, accelerating the pace of public projects, ensuring their efficiency and preventing wastefulness.

The VFF called on the Government, the Ministry of Public Security, other ministries, sectors and local administrations to pay special attention to ensuring political security and social order and safety and cracking down on crimes of all kinds. Local administrations should assume greater responsibility in the management of foreigners who illegally enter and reside in the country or engage in the trading of land and houses in sensitive areas and strictly punish violations of Vietnamese law.

The VFF asked the Government to instruct relevant ministries and localities, first of all Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, to urgently take measures to reduce air pollution and protect the environment, design concrete plans and roadmaps to resolutely relocate production units with high risks of causing fires, explosions and pollution from the inner city, and create land fund to build public facilities serving the people, ease traffic and protect the environment.

The Party and State are asked to continue leading the review and perfection of institutions for the management and supervision of officials and Party members, create favourable conditions for the public, the VFF and its member organisations to monitor personnel work, and push ahead with drastic efforts in preventing and fighting corruption and wastefulness.

The same day, the NA Standing Committee also listened to a report on the supervision of the settlement of voters’ petition, which showed that 98.97 percent of petitions submitted to the NA’s 7th session, or 2,201 petitions, had been handled./. VNA