The Government has recently issued Resolution 161/NQ-CP on speeding up reform and improving efficiency of State-owned enterprises (SOEs).

Illustrative photo: Source: Internet 

The Resolution clarifies tasks and solutions for economic groups, State corporations and SOEs, which are to urgently improve governance and competitiveness, to focus on training human resources, and to build a system of indicators to monitor and evaluate the efficiency of production and business according to modern governance standards and international practices.

Economic groups, corporations and SOEs actively contribute to restructuring the economy, maintaining macro stability and ensuring security for the economy (energy security, food security and, environmental protection).

For State-owned joint stock commercial banks, the State must hold dominant shares. In the fields of electricity, food, telecommunications, national defense and security, enterprises and somewelfare enterprises, the State must hold shares. State-owned enterprises must have strategies to lead and promote the development of fields such as technology 5G, e-government, smart cities and be aware of their role and position in this task to reform, improve efficiency and restructure State-owned enterprises.

For ministries and agencies, they must continue to review the system of legal regulations in the direction of creating greater autonomy and stipulating responsibilities more clearly for economic groups, state corporations, and SOEs.

Under the Resolution, the Ministry of Finance is assigned to review and summarize the implementation of the Law on management and use of state capital to invest in production and business at enterprises and then report to the Government to submit to the National Assembly for amendments and supplements to meet the requirements of SOE restructuring in the future.

Other ministries are assigned to urgently complete the review and report to the Government to submit to the National Assembly for promulgation of revised laws related to SOEs, such as the Bankruptcy Law (the Ministry of Justice cooperates with the Supreme People's Court) and Land Law (Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment).

The Government also requires ministries, agencies, localities, economic groups, state corporations and SOEs to strictly implement the resolutions of the Party, the National Assembly, the Government and the directions of the Prime Minister;to urgently develop and submit to competent authorities for approval or approve restructuring plans of affiliated SOEs in accordance with Decision No. 707 / QD-TTg; to review and strictly handle related individuals and organizations for the delay in approval of the plans.

Moreover, units subject to re-arrangement of the housing and land are assigned to report and propose re-arrangement plans to summarize and report to the competent authorities for approval in accordance with Government Decree No. 167/2017/ND-CP dated December 31, 2017 and amendments and supplements; to review and inspect the implementation of the re-arrangement plans to ensure the compliance with regulations and avoid losses and wastefulness.

The People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities shall direct competent agencies to closely coordinate with enterprises managed in inspecting the current status of housing and land; urgently give comments on the rearrangement plans of housing and land of these enterprises to ensure the progress of the approval of the plans.

Economic groups, state corporations, and SOEs must ensure both the anti-Covid-19 pandemic and maximum production and business activities; reviewand revise production and business targets in 2020 in the new situation; in which, developing solutions to respond to risks and minimize negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, proposingspecific solutions to restore production and business after the pandemic; care for employees, ensure jobs and stable income for employees.

In case of force majeure, it is necessary to temporarily reduce employees, while appropriate support and subsidy policies and regimes must be issued.

The localities need to promote the strengths of key economic regions and big urban centers must become the locomotives for socio-economic development.

It is necessary to develop and implement policies and solutions for sustainable and synchronous development; to promote intra-regional, inter-regional and international links, creating a basis for developing a new model of territorial organization and production and business; and to form industry clusters, linked production value chains and supply chains.

The ministries, agencies and localities shall, based on their assigned functions and tasks, actively research and implement consistently to reformadministrative procedures, improve the business investment climate, and focus on solving shortcomings that hinder business development; restore interrupted value chainsand supply chainsand develop new value chains and supply chains; develop an autonomous and sustainable supply chain of raw materials; develop the domestic market, step up trade and investment promotion activities and promote tourism; support to restore and renew production and business activities and make the most of the advantages of new free trade agreements and support digital transformation and develop the digital economy.

In particular, the Resolution emphasizes the requirements of improving the role, awareness and responsibility of the head of enterprisesin the equitization, divestment and restructuring of state-owned enterprises, linking the results of the implementation of restructuring, reform and improvement of the efficiency of SOEs with the responsibility assessment of the head; and ensuring publicity, transparency, compliance with legal regulations and market principles, and preventing group interests in the equitization, divestment and restructuring of SOEs.