Although Vietnam's business investment environment has made significant progress, the reduction and simplification of business conditions for businesses still faces many bottlenecks. The gap in the quality of Vietnam's business environment compared to the ASEAN-4 is still quite far away on many indicators, so the business environment target equivalent to the ASEAN-4 of Vietnam still faces more challenges.

The administrative procedure reform has been implemented very well and
the application of public service level 4 has helped businesses save a lot of time.

Still formal

If in 2015, Vietnam had about 6,000 business conditions, with the strict and drastic direction of the Government, by the end of 2019, according to the report, ministries and branches had cut more than 50% of conditions. Basically, the business conditions were not clear, deeply interfered with production and business activities, or easily created issues in enforcement, so duplicated conditions were removed.

Regarding this issue, Mr. Dau Anh Tuan, Head of Legal Department, Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), said that in the past, it was often used to compare ourselves, but now, Vietnam is comparing itself to the leading ASEAN countries, so this is a big change of mind. However, cutting business conditions is still difficult in simplification and is not strong and drastic.

Specialized examination still faces many challenges and judicial reform is still difficult. Implementation of the Resolution in localities can be confused. The market entry index increased but needs a breakthrough.

Mr. Dau Anh Tuan added that his experience in improving the business environment shows that there is a need for innovation from the bottom and the role of the local government must be a priority.

The local dynamics of reform play a very important role. A number of new models are suitable for practical needs such as a centralized public administrative center and the professionalism of administrative procedures; entrepreneurship cafes and the government-business dialogue model have promoted efficiency.

From an enterprise perspective, Mr. Dinh Viet Thanh, a legal expert from the Garment Corporation, said that in recent years, the reform of administrative procedures has been implemented very well, the application of public service level 4 has helped businesses save a lot of time. However, when businesses have problems with permits, the ministry “kicks the ball” to others. Businesses want to remove this bottleneck.

Four groups of solutions

According to Ms. Trinh Tu Anh, Director of Van Do Agricultural Trade and Service Co., Ltd., the slow application of electronic payment and invoices also causes difficulties for businesses.

“The reform content cited to 'limit and not use cash'. But when I went from Bac Giang to Lang Son, all four gas stations did not accept payment by card. During the purchase process, it is difficult for our business because many places do not accept card payments. People used the excuse of "broken card scanners" to not issue e-invoices. Electronic invoices are very transparent and prevent tax evasion. I wonder why the electronic payment and use of electronic invoices in some places have not been completed yet. That is what I want to propose and hope in the future, ministries, branches and the Government will focus on reforming this non-cash payment sector, so that businesses can reduce payment difficulties,” Director Trinh Tu Anh said.

Mr. Dau Anh Tuan said that Vietnam's business environment reform may need to be upgraded, not only removing barriers, but also creating a transparent business environment. It is necessary to renovate the process, increase the quality of legal document development, reduce overlaps, and be more professional. Licensing agencies should not lead the drafting of legal documents directly, because the enactment of legal documents can lead to huge enforcement costs, even for businesses and society. The issuance of a legal document must fully calculate these costs.

In order to improve the efficiency of improving the business environment and enhancing national competitiveness in the next period, after Resolution 01/NQ-CP, the Prime Minister issued Resolution 02/NQ-CP on the major measures and solutions to improve the business environment and improve national competitiveness in 2021.

According to CIEM Deputy Director Phan Duc Hieu, reform efforts have not slowed down but are increasingly enhanced. Resolution 02 cites the continued implementation of the goals, tasks and solutions of Resolution 02 in 2019 and adds four groups of solutions.

Specifically, the groups of solutions include: Firstly, it is necessary to solve problems and shortcomings with businesses and people due to the lack of connection and coordination among related agencies and units.

Secondly, implement digital transformation in state management, towards building e-Government, and increasing the application of information technology.

Thirdly, implement the goals of sustainable developmen: investment in susainable business; focusing on factors of environmental protection and climate change, creating job opportunities for vulnerable groups.

Finally, continue to support businesses to restore production and business, and overcome the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.