Vietnam sets up new regulatory management tool

Earlier this month, a new program was launched in an effort to promote a modern regulatory management systemin Vietnam by providing the National Assembly and government agencies with the resources they need to improve the quality of policies and legal documents. According to an article in Vietnews, the Program for Enhancing Regulatory Quality (PERQ) features a combined outreach strategy of facilitation, training events, workshops, and a people-to-people ambassador scheme. PERQ is jointly developed by the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), the Ministry of Planning and Investment, and the U.S. Agency for International Development's Vietnam Competitiveness Initiative (USAID/VNCI). It will help decision makers eliminate regulations that impose unnecessary costs on the community, impede innovation, and stifle competitiveness. "PERQ will make significant contribution to ensuring a transparent and accountable regulatory environment, which is a critical factor in fostering a competitive economy and attracting future investment to Vietnam," said Nguyen Dinh Cung, deputy director of CIEM. According to CIEM, the number of legal documents issued by central government agencies in Vietnam soared sevenfold to 8,520 in 2009 from 1,245 in 2004. This new development is welcome in a context where there had recently been some criticism of the slow pace of reform (see Voice of Vietnam article in July, reported on this blog); For more on PERQ, see Vietnews article (tip from Daniel T.)