The Law on Public Investment, effective from January 1, 2015, prescribes the procedures, process, and approval process for investment policies, investment decisions, capital plan allocation, disbursement deployment, etc., more stringently than before. Therefore, many localities have proposed various opinions regarding the implementation of the Law on Public Investment and related guiding documents.
Article table of contents
The Ministry of Planning and Investment issued Official Dispatch 6561/BKHDT-TH on August 23, 2016, to implement the Public Investment Law, the guiding decrees, and the Resolution No. 60/NQ-CP. Provinces and centrally-run cities are to implement in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry.
No authorization for lower levels to decide on the investment policy for group A projects
According to Clause 3, Article 17 of the Public Investment Law, the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam decides on the investment policy for all group A projects using public investment capital and does not allow the investment policy decision-making authority to delegate to lower levels the decision on the investment policies for public investment programs and projects. Therefore:
- No authorization is allowed for major cities to decide on investment policies for group A projects using local budget funds;- No authorization is allowed for localities to decide on investment policies for group A projects in areas with special national relics of small scale, that do not change the original relic architecture.
Proposal to skip the investment policy approval step for projects with a total investment of less than 15 billion VND
Some provinces have proposed considering skipping the investment policy approval step for projects with a total investment of less than 15 billion VND, even though according to the Public Investment Law, all projects using public investment capital must have their investment policies decided by the competent authority. The abolition of such regulations falls under the jurisdiction of the National Assembly. The Government of Vietnam cannot amend regulations that have been passed by the National Assembly.
To simplify procedures while still adhering to the Public Investment Law, the Government of Vietnam has provided streamlined procedures for small-scale projects of national target programs with non-complex technical requirements, partially funded by the State, the rest funded by the people; projects with a total investment of less than 5 billion VND within national target programs, and programs for solidifying kindergarten classrooms. Accordingly, the investment policy proposal report is prepared for the entire project portfolio (not for each project) and the total estimated investment for the entire portfolio.
The above are just two out of 12 proposals for easing the conditions for approving public investment projects. Following the directives of the Government of Vietnam and the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the current regulations will continue to be strictly implemented, ensuring strict, effective public investment management.
See detailed answers to other issues in Official Dispatch 6561/BKHDT-TH.
