At the mid-term review meeting (Photo: MPI) It was reported at the meeting that 47out of the total 80 sub-items in the joint initiative have been well implemented asscheduled so far, 15 are underway, six make no progress, and work will start on 12 others in the time ahead.
Do Nhat Hoang, head of the Foreign Investment Agencyunder the MPI, said Vietnamese ministries and agencies have coordinated withthe Japanese side to implement commitments in the action plan of theinitiative.
Vietnam’s commitment to materialising the joint initiativemanifests the government’s resolve to improve the domestic investment environment,he said.
Many legal documents have been amended and adoptedwithin the framework of the initiative, he noted, adding that Vietnameseministries and agencies have also taken into consideration many recommendations ofJapan during the consolidation process of fine-tuning laws and policies, as well as law enforcement.
Envoy Okabe Daisuke from the Japanese Embassy emphasisedthat the two sides will continue their coordination and implementation ofcommitments in the action plan to make the eighth phase a success, contributingto improving the Vietnamese business environment, for the development andprosperity of both Vietnamese and Japanese business communities.
The Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative was launched inApril 2003 as a special cooperation mechanism between the Vietnameseand Japanese Governments.
It serves as a policy dialogue forum betweenJapanese investors and relevant Vietnamese ministries and agencies, whereproposals are made to help competent Vietnamese agencies fine-tune lawsand policies.
Over the past 19 years, the initiative has helpedcreate an open and transparent business and investment environment in Vietnam.
The eighth phase of the initiatives focuses on 11groups of issues, including the publication and application of case law/civiljudgment enforcement/competition regime; the Law on Investment and the Law onEnterprises; improvement of the working environment; promoting infrastructureinvestment in the form of public-private partnership (PPP); reform ofstate-owned enterprises and stock market; method of implementing specificmeasures to create the best electricity structure in Vietnam; and efforts toimprove laws and regulations related to natural gas pipeline construction andpromote import of liquefied natural gas.
They also cover land-related issues; the supportingindustry; activities of the Vietnam National Innovation Center (NIC)and innovation activities in localities and businesses; and highly skilledhuman resources development.
Because the global economy was seriously affected bythe COVID-19 pandemic, especially disruptions in supply chains, Vietnam andJapan agreed to add three new groups of issues: development of the supportingindustry, innovation and development of highly skilled human resources./.
VNA
