Consistent, Effective Administrative Reform to Improve Competitiveness

By actively advising and adopting many solutions on stronger administrative reform, the Bac Giang Department of Home Affairs has helped improve the effectiveness and efficiency of all levels of administration, as well as the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI. Mr. Nguyen Van Phuong, Deputy Director of the Department of Home Affairs, has an exclusive interview on these issues with Vietnam Business Forum’s reporter.

In 2021, Bac Giang province secured high standings in the Public Administration Reform Index (PAR Index) and the Satisfaction Index of Public Administrative Services (SIPAS). Could you please tell us about these results? What solutions will the province continue to take to promote these results?

In 2021, Bac Giang province ranked 7th on the PAR Index out of 63 provinces and cities, six places higher than in 2020. SIPAS Index scored 90.01%, ranking 8th out of 63 provinces and cities. These results came from the leadership of the Provincial Party Committee, the direction and administration of the Provincial People's Committee and the effort and determination of relevant agencies and localities, thus creating ripple effects on governmental agencies, citizens and businesses in the province.

To maintain and improve these outcomes, in the coming time, the province will continue to carry out new service forms after the new head office of the Vinh Phuc Public Administration Center comes into operation. The province will regularly train and improve professional skills in the PAR Index for leaders and public employees and consider agency leaders responsible if their performance drops two consecutive years or stays in the bottom group for three consecutive years.

In 2022, the department advised the Chair of the Provincial People's Committee to set up five inspection teams and inspected 15 agencies and localities as scheduled. Official inspection teams conducted direct inspections at 44 agencies and localities.

In addition, carrying out Decree 42/2022/ND-CP dated June 24, 2022 of the Government, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee promptly issued Decision 2876/QD-UBND dated August 31, 2022 approving a list of online public services on the Provincial Administrative Procedure Information System, which delivers 657 services. The province continued to review and propose reducing administrative procedures, ensuring the delivery of at least 30% of administrative procedures to be provided in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Control Plan and the single-window mechanism in 2022. Over 99% of administrative procedures were handled in time or before time.

Regarding the PCI results in 2021, how do you assess the indicators monitored by the Department of Home Affairs such as “Transparency”, “Cost of Time” and “Dynamism of Government”?

In 2021, the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) of Bac Giang province scored 64.74 points, 0.76 points higher than in 2020, to rank 31st out of 63 provinces and cities. Among component indices administered by the Department of Home Affairs, only one index gained. The Transparency Index was 6.27 points, 0.88 points higher than in 2020, while two indices declined: “Time cost” fell 1.69 points to 6.99 points and “Dynamism of Government” tumbled 1.09 points to 5.66 points.

To raise these indicators, right after the Provincial People's Committee issued Plan 418/KH-UBND dated July 7, 2022 on PCI improvement in 2022, the Department of Home Affairs actively worked out and carried out Action Plan 45/KH-SNV dated July 29, 2022. The department also monitored and urged tasks performed by agencies and localities to ensure that they met and exceeded their tasks concerning index performance.

In addition, the Department of Home Affairs trained and fostered communication skills and civil service ethics for public employees, effectively promoted the "Office Smile" emulation movement; strengthened inspection of official duties to promptly rectify and handle public employees who are irresponsible or bureaucratically harassing people.

In addition to launching the PCI Improvement Plan in 2022, Bac Giang also announced many tasks and solutions to substantively upgrade the business environment. As the provincial PAR advisory body, would you be kind enough to tell us key PAR actions in the 2021-2025 period? How did the department develop specific plans and goals?

In order to speed up administrative reform, the Department of Home Affairs advised the Provincial People's Committee to issue Plan 402/KH-UBND dated August 21, 2021 on Bac Giang Public Administration Reform in 2021-2030, which includes drastic, consistent and effective administrative procedure reform.

The province determined to reduce and simplify at least 20% of regulations and at least 20% of compliance costs of business-related documents with effective date until the end of May 31, 2020 and at least 80% of administrative procedures regarding financial obligations to be delivered online by 2025, with online payment transactions accounting for 30% or more.

In addition, 80% of administrative procedures delivered by relevant provincial and local agencies are provided online on the Provincial Public Service Portal where at least 90% of people and businesses are satisfied with administrative procedures provided and 90% of internal administrative procedures among governmental administrative agencies are published, publicized and updated in a timely manner.

How is the Department of Home Affairs determined to reform public administration to improve the business environment, build up business and investor satisfaction, and enhance the province's competitiveness?

To build an open business environment and create an enabling administration in a bid to draw more investors to the province, the Department of Home Affairs will continue to review and advise the Provincial People's Committee to effectively carry out apparatus reform and public personnel reform and focus on upgrading underperforming indicators of the Public Administration Reform Index (PAR Index), the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) and the Satisfaction Index of Public Administrative Services (SIPAS).

In particular, the department will foster information technology application, boldly and actively advise on piloting new ways of doing things - a good, breakthrough model in PAR; deal with belated settlement of administrative procedures; strictly follow the process on the electronic single-window software; answer correctly, sufficiently and promptly feedback and recommendations from people, and publicize settlement results of administrative procedures.

The Department of Home Affairs always takes public and business satisfaction as a measure to evaluate the effect and performance of governmental agencies’ operations and service capacity of public employees.

Thank you very much!

Huong Giang (Vietnam Business Forum)