On May 16 2006, the ninth session of the 11th National Assembly opened in Hanoi. The session is discussing many major issues, such as the Government’s report on the implementation of the socio-economic development tasks in 2005 and plans for 2006, the 2006-2010 socio-economic plans, the settlement of the State budget in 2004, and the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s report on management and use of capital sources, especially official development assistance (ODA) capital.
National Assembly chairman Nguyen Van An’s opening speech and the Government report by Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung emphasised the great achievements in socio-economic development in the 2001-2005 period. Accordingly, over the past five years, most development targets set by the 10th National Assembly were fulfilled or surpassed with GDP increasing by 7.5 per cent per annum, equal to the target; industrial production value increasing by 16 per cent per annum, higher than the target of 13.1 per cent; service value rising by 7.6 per cent per year, or 0.1 per cent higher than the target; and export turnover increasing by 17.5 per cent, higher than the target of between 14 and 16 per cent.
However, the Government’s report admitted that the achievements had not yet matched Vietnam’s potential. Socio-economic development activities remain weak and the use of resources for socio-economic development remains ineffective.
According to Minister of Planning and Investment Vo Hong Phuc, the waste of resources resulted from poor management and discipline. A report by the National Assembly Economic and Budget Committee on State Budget balance sheet stated that over the past years, the management and use of State budget and ODA capital had not seen any change for the better yet. In particular, some agencies and industries established so many project management units, which were assigned with too much power, but their responsibility was not clarified. Together with loose inspection and examination, the situation resulted in mistakes. The committee’s report mentioned a huge exceed of budget estimates by administrative management, 33.5 per cent, due to wrong-purposed spending.
According to Deputy Prime Minister Dung, in the coming time Vietnam should take opportunities from international economic integration to create a breakthrough development for the services, bringing its growth rate to a higher level than that of GDP. Priorities should be given to the services with great potential and high competitiveness. Also, financial, banking, insurance and securities services should be modernised and expanded, while legal, scientific and technological, educational and training, health, cultural and information, sport and job services should be further developed. The operation mechanisms of public service providers should be renewed. In particular, Vietnam should pursue an approach of ‘building and prevention’ in its fight against corruption. To that end, Dung said, the public expenditures, financial management, the mobilisation and use of State budget and other resources contributed by the people should be transparent.
Guiding norms for socio-economic development in the 2006-2010 period:
A growth rate of 7.5 and eight per cent per year for GDP, which will reach between US$94billion and 98 billion in 2010 on a basis of a calculation with price, more than 2 times lower than in 2000,
Economic sectors’ contribution to GDP in 2010: 15-16 per cent for agriculture, forestry and fisheries; 43-44 per cent for industry and construction, and 40-41 per cent for services;
Per capita GDP of between US$1,050 and 1,100;
35 telephones and 12.6 Internet subscribers for every 100 people in 2010;
A completion of junior secondary education in all cities and provinces, and two university or college students among every 10,000 people in 2010;
A number of trained workers reaching 40 per cent of total number of workers in 2010;
A number of workers in agriculture accounting for 50 per cent of total number of workers in the society;
A population increase of 1.14 per cent in 2010 with a population of 88.4 people;
A number of poor households cut to 10-11 per cent in 2010;
An average housing floor of 14-15 square metres per person;
An application of clean technologies or pollution minimising equipment in 100 per cent of newly-built production establishments and a rate of 50 per cent of production and business establishment reaching the environmental standard;
100 per cent of urban areas, third class, and 50 per cent, fourth class;
100 per cent of industrial parks, export processing zones having waste water treatment, 90 per cent of solid wastes, 80 per cent of harmful wastes and 100 per cent of medical wastes being collected and treated; and
95 per cent of people in urban areas and 75 per cent in rural areas having safe water.
(Source: The Government’s report to the opening session of the National Assembly on May 16, 2005)
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