Binh Duong has a lot of big businesses, including many FDI firms. How to effectively manage and create best conditions for businesses is always a huge challenge. Vietnam Business Forum Magazine has an interview with Mr Nguyen Truong Giang, Deputy Director of the Binh Duong Customs Department, on its operational results and efforts. Giang Vy reports.
Could you please introduce some remarkable results that the Binh Duong Customs Department has achieved?
With great efforts and drastic solutions, the Binh Duong Customs Department has achieved many important results, thus positively contributing to the development of Binh Duong province in particular and of the country in general. In recent years, the State budget revenue exceeded VND7,000 billion. In 2016, the department settled nearly 1.2 million customs declaration forms to clear export and import value of almost US$35 billion. The department served some 5,000 enterprises in the year.
Would you mind telling difficulties and challenges of the department when it operates in a province with a developed economy and a big business force?
Binh Duong is a dynamic province in the southeast region. The province is one of the five biggest recipients of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the country. To date, the province has attracted over US$25 billion of FDI capital. In 2016, it expected to draw US$1 billion but ended the year with nearly US$2 billion, doubling the target. Given the above achievements, the department has received a lot of commendations from the provincial government. However, language is now a high barrier because the department has to serve investors from many countries like Japan, South Korea, Taiwan (China), China and Europe.
In recent years, the Binh Duong Customs Department has made efforts to build relationship with businesses. Would you be kind enough to talk more about this?
While serving foreign exporters and importers from other countries such as Japan, South Korea, China and Europe, the Binh Duong Customs Department has adopted many creative solutions to propagate laws and supports to facilitate their export and import operations. In particular, the department has actively worked with every business association to sign a cooperation programme in support of export and import activities.
To strengthen customs - business partnership, in recent years, the Binh Duong Customs Department actively signed memorandums of understanding on cooperation in export and import law communication, and answered their questions from local enterprises and business association. Every week, the department processes petitions and sends answers to enterprises via the Binh Duong Exporters and Importers Club.
To date, the department inked memorandums of understanding on communication with seven business chapters in Binh Duong province and Ho Chi Minh City such as the chapter of South Korean businesses, the chapter of Taiwanese businesses, Japanese industrialists in HCM City and woodwork association in Binh Duong province.
The Binh Duong Customs Department set up a advisory board responsible for giving online replies to questions raised by local enterprises; and timely communicated on new policies and instructions to the business community. The department publicised administrative procedures on the website; received opinions, complaints and comments about the attitude and the manner of customs officers. At present, the department’s website has recently added Korean language to increase its supported languages to four: Vietnamese, English, Chinese and Korean.
What solutions will the Binh Duong Customs Department take to strengthen its management, facilitate business operation and improve the local business environment?
In order to further improve and raise the provincial competitiveness index (PCI), the Binh Duong Customs Department will issue a series of measures to better the business environment and enhance national competitiveness. Specifically, the department continues to speed up reform and modernisation to facilitate trade, control compliance, ensure revenue and reduce clearance time. It strictly enforces customs laws, commitments and international practices in order to facilitate trade, investment and tourism; and ensure security, social security and public health.
The department will effectively use the VNACCS/VCIS system, the National Single Window (NSW) and State management application programmes on customs; build and deploy ASEAN technical standards according the roadmap endorsed by the General Department of Vietnam Customs.
The department will continue to deploy container scanners and equipment at Song Than ICD while carrying out customs procedures on the VNACCS/VCIS system. The department targets to achieve and exceed the level of ASEAN 4 in clearance time and cargo release.
The department will carry out risk management technologies in customs inspection and surveillance, gradually support post-clearance examinations, built and deployed compliance management programmes to identify wrongdoings and misconducts of enterprises.
The department will apply information technology, audit customs at working offices of enterprises. It will expand the scope of customs priority for more enterprises, so as to enhance competitiveness in the integration.
Vietnamese
