Seven Major Groups of Tasks and Solutions in 2016

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung reviewed results achieved in 2015 and outlined specific tasks and measures for achieving socioeconomic development objectives in 2016.

 

Remarking on socioeconomic situations and reviewing governmental leadership, management and administration, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung stressed that 2015 was the last year of the five-year plan from 2011 to 2015. Looking back on 2015 and the five-year term, Vietnam achieved important socioeconomic development results and faced with numerous difficulties and challenges.

 

In the region and the world, economic, political and security developments were complicated and unpredictable, particularly slower-than-expected global economic recovery, falling crude oil prices, unexpectedly sharp Chinese yuan devaluation, slower growths of big economies, and complicated situations in the East Sea. These negatively impacted our country.

 

Domestically, in spite of positive achievements, Vietnam still saw a lot of limitations and weaknesses. Although Vietnam is now deeply integrated, the competitiveness of the country and businesses is still low. This is a huge challenge as the investment resource for socioeconomic development, defence and security remains limited. Fortunately, with the effort of the entire Party, people and army, in 2015 and the five-year period, Vietnam’s socioeconomic situation positively progressed in most aspects.

 

“This is a joint effort of the whole country, the whole Party, the whole army and the whole people. These achievements created prerequisites and conditions for Vietnam to enter the year 2016 and the next five-year development plan (2016-2020) with high expectations for better results,” said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

 

Regarding tasks in 2016 and the next five years, Prime Minister Dung stressed that the country will implement socioeconomic development tasks in the context of extensive international economic integration, especially as the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is formed. Vietnam has established free trade relations with 55 countries, including the 20 largest economies in the world. In addition to advantages and opportunities from international integration, Vietnam must compete very fiercely and aggressively in the market economy. The world is meanwhile forecast to be complicated and unpredictable.

 

“The general ideas of the government, ministries, branches and localities are to further strive to promote results achieved and experience learned from practice; endeavour to overcome limitations and weaknesses, turn difficulties and challenges into advantages; have appropriate policies to cope with unexpected changes; attempt to achieve highest results in all indicators set for 2016 and the five years from 2016 to 2020,” he stressed.

 

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung underscored five major groups of tasks and solutions below.

 

The first group of tasks is to continue ensuring and enhancing macroeconomic stability and controlling inflation. This is a very important ongoing task.

The Prime Minister pressed on the continued implementation of three strategic breakthroughs. Ministries and localities must take specific actions and practical measures to effectively carry out these three strategic breakthroughs. Accordingly, authorities will constantly perfect State administration and create favourable conditions for citizens to earn a living and for enterprises to do business, expand production and business operations, develop human resources and utilise resources. This is also a way of improving national competitiveness. Regarding infrastructure breakthrough, Vietnam will also mobilise various resources for infrastructure development. With respect to human resources breakthrough, the country will focus on training human resources, particularly high level personnel, to meet development demands.

 

Besides, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung noted that ministries, branches and localities need to speed up and implement overall economic restructuring, in which focus is placed on public investment restructuring, State-owned enterprise restructuring, bank restructuring and agricultural restructuring. Public investment restructuring must be tied to ensuring the safety of national financial system and enhancing the efficiency of public investment. SOE restructuring is not only defined to equitisation and divestment from non-core business fields but also improving corporate governance capacity and efficiency. The Prime Minister underlined the reshuffle of State-owned forest plantations.

 

He also noted that it is necessary to further strengthen State management, enhance the potential and efficiency of scientific and technological activities, and encourage scientific and technological researches and applications to production and business to boost productivity, quality and competitiveness of products and services.

 

The second group of tasks is to further promote cultural, social, health, education and welfare development, ensure social welfare, social progress and justice, and improve livelihoods of people. All solutions will be carried out equally, with special interests given to two national target programmes: New Countryside Construction Programme and Sustainable Poverty Reduction Programme. Central and local authorities are requested to guarantee enough resources for the carrying out of these two programmes as well as 16 other target programmes.

 

The third group of tasks is to further focus on administrative reform to improve the investment and business climate; enhance competitiveness; reduce costs for citizens and businesses; apply information technology to State administration to enhance openness, publicity, transparency and professionalism and reduce the time and effort to the State, citizens and businesses.

 

The fourth group of tasks is further improve the efficiency of foreign affairs and international integration in order to create an environment and conditions favourable for utilising external resources, including from capital and market to management experience to serve national construction and development objectives.

 

The fifth group of tasks is constantly to strengthen defence and security capacity, political stability, social order and safety; firmly safeguard independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of the country; combine defence and security tasks with socioeconomic development tasks.

 

The sixth group of tasks is to proactively provide information about socioeconomic situation, policies and guidelines of the Party, and laws and policies of the State, directions of the Government, and international commitments in free trade agreements (opportunities, difficulties and challenges); strengthen social consensus and national unity.

 

The seventh group of tasks is, based on lessons learned, Prime Minister urged ministries, branches and localities to further promote results achieved, overcome existing problems and limits, enhance institutional capacity, enhance accountability, strengthen coordination, and drastically, synchronously and creatively apply carry out objectives and tasks set.

 

The cabinet meeting discussed two major contents: Review report on government direction and administration and implementation of Resolution 01/NQ-CP of the Government on carrying out of socioeconomic development plans in 2015 and the Draft Resolution of the Government on major tasks and solutions on carrying out of socioeconomic development plans and budget estimations for 2016. 17 local leaders and 20 cabinet members delivered speeches to the meeting.

 

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung appreciated opinions raised by delegates, responsibilities of Deputy Prime Ministers, ministerial leaders, leaders of branches and localities; requested the Ministry of Planning and Investment to coordinate with the Office of Government to collect opinions to complete the Report and the draft Resolution above to bring them into life in early 2016.