Determining that administrative reform is a breakthrough in the socioeconomic development strategy, Vinh Phuc province has adopted consistent solutions to build a modern, open, professional, dynamic, effective and efficient administration. Up to now, its administrative reform has made remarkable progress in all fields. Regulations on business conditions are simplified.

The cause of building e-government and renovating the operating apparatus of the administrative system is in line with the process of applying information technology to public administration. Currently, the province is running document management software at 176 agencies and localities, including 40 provincial departments and district People's Committees and 136 communes, wards and towns. The Vinh Phuc Public Service Portal has integrated 378 online public services, including 249 services of Level 3 and 129 services of Level 4. Since the beginning of the year, the province has received 7,395 records online of Level 3 and Level 4 out of a total of 25,546 records (accounting for 29%); and provided five public services to support businesses and people hurt by the Covid-19 pandemic. Two of them were launched by the Government Office on the National Public Service Portal and the remainder are deployed on the electronic single-window information portal to receive and process documents through software.

Besides, Vinh Phuc has made many initiatives and solutions on administrative procedure reform. The Department of Information and Communications has coordinated with the Authority of Information Technology Application, Ministry of Information and Communications, to send and receive electronic documents through the local government service platform (LGSP). In addition to sending and receiving electronic documents across the province, districts and communes, the shared document management software can also link and receive electronic documents on the National Document Axis with central authorities.

In the context of the complicated Covid-19 pandemic development, Vinh Phuc has stepped up administrative procedure reforms, focused on simplifying and reducing time and costs for businesses, and enhanced the delivery of online public services of Level 3 and Level 4. The time for enterprise establishment is three working days as specified in the Law on Enterprises. The time for issuing a tentative investment decision does not exceed 25 days and the issuing an investment registration certificate does not exceed 15 days. The software system for taxpayers to declare and pay tax electronically has been regularly upgraded to help taxpayers spend less time with tax affairs. The delivery of online public services to taxpayers by tax authorities is being done at Level 3 and Level 4. All taxpayers - businesses, cooperatives and economic organizations - file electronic tax declarations and 98% of them pay tax electronically. All taxpayers will get tax refunds electronically.

In construction, the time for processing administrative procedures concerning design assessment and construction permission issued by the Department of Construction has been reduced by at least 20% from the regulatory time. The granting of construction permits needs 73.3% less time. The time for conducting procedures concerning project appraisal, basic design, technical design, construction drawing and construction permit takes at most just 56 days (compared to the requirement of the Directive: Down to at most 63 days).

The banking industry has also stepped up administrative reform such as cutting and improving loan procedures and service processes. The time and turns of paper provided declined by 10-20%. Some processes/products and services reduced application forms by 25%, signatures of customers by 45%, signatures of bank staff by 48%, and online application submission time by 70% -75%. All commercial banks publicize information about processes and procedures of delivering services to customers on their websites.

Inspection plans are strictly carried out, avoiding overlapped inspections, ensuring no inspection and examination of each enterprise of more than once a year according to Directive 20/CT-TTg, in order to minimize troubles and obstructions to normal operation of enterprises.

By Quynh Ngoc, Vietnam Business Forum