At the workshop (Source: Bnews.vn)Hanoi (VNA) – It is necessary to define differences between the country’s Bidding Law and commitments concerning government procurement stated in the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), so as to make suitable adjustments, said an economic expert.
Speaking at a workshop in Hanoi on January 27, Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, Director of the World Trade Organisation and Integration Centre under the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), said the VCCI has implemented a study which offers feasible proposals on the issue, specifically those benefiting domestic businesses.
Compared to international regulations on bidding, Vietnam’s revised Bidding Law in 2013 ensures principles of transparency, competition and efficiency concerning bidding invitation announcements, bidding documents and bidding procedures.
The study shows that there are many differences between commitments to the EVFTA and Vietnam’s current Bidding Law, including those related to the use of electronic devices, reasons for selecting bidders, bid price, the deadline for bidding document submission, and conditions for joining bids.
About two-thirds of regulations in the law have yet to comply with relevant commitments in the EVFTA, Trang said.
She underlined the need to make suitable changes to the law to have it conform better to the country’s integration reality, thus bringing benefits to the domestic business community.
According to Ninh Viet Dinh from Electricity of Vietnam, the Bidding Law 2013 is quite consistent with the country’s international integration process, including contents in connection with free trade agreements and the Trans-pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement.
Tran Trung Kien, a bidding expert from the World Bank in Vietnam said Vietnam needs to build more regulations around opening the market to international bidding activity, adding that regulations related to domestic bidding should also facilitate the participation of bidders from regional countries and EVFTA member nations.
Negotiations of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement were completed in late 2015. The agreement is forecast to affect Vietnam’s legal institutions and economy reasonably soon.-VNA
