Vietnam propose cuts in army business
The Vietnam Communist Party wants the People's Army and socio-political agencies to get out of business as the country moves to liberalize the mostly state-run economy.
The proposal, and others aimed at slimming down party and government agencies, were made at last week's plenum of the Central Committee, according to official media, which has been reporting details of the conference in the past few days.
The army runs major firms such as telephone and Internet service provider Viettel and the Military Bank, both of which would be equitized soon as shares of state-run firms are moved to a company that will sell stakes to private investors.
Military-run firms have business interests in logging, coffee and rubber production, coal mining, construction, chartered flights, ship building and repair, container terminal handling, garments and footwear, stock broking, health services and trade.
"The conference unanimously endorsed the policy to transfer the companies that are currently engaged in regular economic activities and under the management of party agencies, the armed forces, the Fatherland Front and other socio-political agencies to state-run agencies from 2007," the conference report said.
The Fatherland Front is an umbrella group that includes organizations such as labor, health and social services.
The army runs around 140 companies and holds shares in more than 20 other firms operating in almost every area of the economy, Major-General Ho Sy Hau, head of the Defence Ministry's Economic Department, said on Jan. 9.
He said military firms generated VND33 trillion (US$2 billion) in revenues last year, 3 percent of Vietnam's gross domestic product.
"In the economic integration process, the Defence Ministry's policy is to restructure trading firms and companies with products of dual targets such as garments and textiles, footwear, equipment and electricity," Hau said in an interview published on the department's Web site (www.ckt.gov.vn).
Communist Party agencies and the police also run businesses.
The proposals follow the five-yearly Communist Party National Congress in April 2006, which called for faster market reforms, increasing transparency and stepping up the fight against corruption and bureaucratic waste.
The Central Committee decided to halve the number of central level party organizations to six and several of the government's 26 ministries would be cut through mergers, the Vietnam Investment Review reported.
The Central Committee would meet again to finalize policies and government cabinet changes before elections for the unicameral National Assembly on May 20, the reports said.
Vietnam's economy grew at 8.17 percent in 2006 with a target of 8.5 percent growth in gross domestic product this year.
The Southeast Asian country became the newest member of the World Trade Organization on Jan. 11, which obliges Hanoi to accelerate its 20-year long market-orientated reforms so businesses can compete under international trading rules. |
