Environmental Protection in Socio-Economic Development Programs

According to Decree 140/2006, environmental protection is the duty and responsibility of all organizations and individuals involved in the establishment, appraisal, approval, and implementation of strategies, planning, plans, programs, and development projects within the territory of Vietnam.

At the stage of formulating strategies, planning, plans, programs, and development projects:

- When formulating development strategies, planning, and plans, the content must include the evaluation and forecast of environmental impacts, environmental protection indicators, measures to prevent and handle pollution;- The agency assigned to formulate strategies, planning, and development plans is responsible for preparing the strategic environmental assessment report simultaneously with the strategy, planning, and plan formulation process;- The content of the strategic environmental assessment report is conducted according to the provisions of Article 16 of the Law on Environmental Protection.

At the stage of appraising and approving strategies, planning, plans, programs, and development projects:

- The appraisal dossier for strategies, planning, and plans must include the results of the strategic environmental assessment appraisal by the competent authority, in addition to the prescribed documents;- The appraisal of the strategic environmental assessment report is carried out according to the provisions of Article 17 of the Law on Environmental Protection.

At the stage of organizing the implementation of strategies, planning, plans, programs, and development projects:

- The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, in cooperation with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, relevant line ministries, and People's Committees of provinces and centrally-governed cities, is responsible for supervising, inspecting, and auditing the implementation of environmental protection regulations regarding strategies, planning, and development plans. Supervision, inspection, and auditing are carried out according to current legal regulations.- Ministries, sectors, and People's Committees of provinces and centrally-governed cities are responsible for resolving according to their competence or submitting to the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam to resolve complaints and handle petitions from organizations and individuals related to environmental protection in the process of implementing strategies, planning, and development plans;- Annually, ministries, sectors, and People's Committees of provinces and centrally-governed cities are responsible for preparing reports on the situation of inspection, audit, and supervision of the implementation of environmental protection regulations concerning strategies, planning, and development plans and submitting them to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is responsible for consolidating these reports to submit to the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam.

See more at Decree 140/2006/ND-CP effective from December 16, 2006.

- Thuy Phu -

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