Law overlaps hamper Vietnam’s investment attraction

• Feb 12, 2019

The Hanoitimes – Many cities and provinces have faced difficulties in conducting investment procedures, particularly for projects using local land, due to the inconsistency and contradictions among the prevailing regulations.

Provisions in some laws should be unified to remove barriers for cities and provinces in luring investment as the overlaps and contradictions of the laws have hindered the activity, officials said.

Dang Quoc Khanh, chairman of Ha Tinh province’s People’s Committee, said during a recent meeting with the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) that several provisions in the laws on Investment, Land, Environmental Protection, Housing, and Bidding still overlap and contradict each other, causing difficulties for cities and provinces in attracting investment.
For example, Khanh said, the Investment Law stipulates that if there are different provisions between this law and other laws relating investment orders and procedures, the provisions of the Investment Law shall prevail (except for the investment and business orders and procedures regulated in Securities Law, Law on Credit Institutions, Insurance Business Law and Petroleum Law). However, the Housing Law stipulates a separate procedure for housing projects.
Or in the case of the Investment Law and the Law on Environmental Protection, the former only requires a preliminary report on environmental impact assessment in the project’s proposal, but the latter requires approval on the environmental impact assessment report before getting in-principle approval for investment.
There is also a difference between provisions in the Bidding Law and the Land Law, Khanh said, explaining the Bidding Law regulates that land for commercial and service projects must be subject to acquisition or use by the State without compensation. However, according to the Land Law, the land for such projects is not subject to the State’s acquisition.
Many leaders of cities and provinces also said that the current provisions of the Land Law do not cover land allocation or land lease on the basis of bidding results to select investors to implement projects. Therefore, after bidding, there is no mechanism for land allocation and land lease to winning bidders, causing major adverse impacts on investment attraction.
Many cities and provinces have faced difficulties in conducting investment procedures, particularly for projects using local land, due to the inconsistency and contradictions among the prevailing regulations, Khanh said, suggesting the prime minister and the Ministry of Planning and Investment consider handling the issues, allowing provinces to attract investment in a consistent manner in the coming period.
Detailed guidelines needed
To facilitate investment attraction, participants at the meeting have also urged the government to rapidly issue decrees or guidelines on the execution of new laws, including the Law on Planning.
According to Khanh, the execution of the laws is the most challenging issue, explaining that the Law on Planning has taken effect since January 1 this year, but to date, there are no decrees or guidelines on its implementation, leaving many provincial officials confused. .
Sharing the same viewpoint, officials from Hanoi proposed the issuance of decrees guiding the execution of the Law on Planning, and circulars following the decrees.
The bottlenecks in investment procedures should be removed as soon as possible to create favorable conditions for attracting more investors, the officials said.
Vu Hong Bac, chairman of Thai Nguyen province’s People’s Committee, suggested the ministry submit a draft law on investment under the public-private partnership format to the government and the prime minister for consideration, after which it would be sent to the National Assembly for approval to ease the country’s investment procedures.
In response to the proposals, the MPI’s representatives confirmed that it will continue revising administrative procedures this year to improve the country’s investment attraction.

Source: http://www.hanoitimes.vn/investment/2019/02/81E0D30A/law-overlaps-hamper-vietnam-s-investment-attraction/