Nguyen Minh Thao, head of the Department of Business Environment and Competitiveness at CIEM, made the statement during a seminar entitled “Vietnam’s business environment in 2016-2019 through Dong Business ranking: Outcomes and some reform recommendations”, held by the institute in Hanoi on October 28.
The event aimed to discuss obstacles and difficulties faced by enterprises in performing formalities concerning production and business activities, such as starting a business, dealing with construction permits, registering property, getting electricity, and paying tax and social insurance.
According to Thao, over recent years, the Government has made constant efforts in reducing conditional business lines, reducing and simplifying business conditions, changing the technology management methods in some areas, applying e-transactions in performing administrative procedures and noncash payments, and renovating inspection work.
After four years, Vietnam has jumped up 69 places in terms of electricity access, 58 places concerning paying tax and social insurance, seven places regarding credit access and six places in terms of starting a business, in the World Bank’s East of Doing Business ranking, she stated.
Despite the improvement, Vietnam’s business environment still has a number of obstacles, especially regarding business conditions, Thao said, stressing the need to renovate the management mindset of ministries, sectors and localities, while reducing time and costs for businesses through implementing online public services in a substantial fashion.
Dau Anh Tuan, head of the Legal Department at the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), suggested that the customs sector should be more effective in terms of its specialised inspection, and improving the efficiency of the National Single Window portal.
For her part, Hoang Thi Lan Anh, Deputy Director of the Tax Reform and Modernisation Department at the General Department of Taxation, recommended publicising and transparentising tax administrative procedures, supporting tax-payers, strengthening supervision over tax officials’ public work performance, and coordinating with relevant units to implement the reforms of tax administrative formalities.
