Vice secretary of the ministry’s office, NguyenThi Kieu Nguyet, said that public administrative services are now provided byState agencies which have the authority to grant licences, permits andcertificates.
Currently, there are about 490 administrativeprocedures and about 250 types of licences in the transport sector, Nguyetsaid, adding that agencies under the transport ministry are reviewing andselecting some administrative services to transfer to private certifiers, Giao Thong (Transport) newspaper reported.
Vice Director of the Directorate for Roads of VietnamPhan Thi Thu Hien supported the plan, suggesting that administrative proceduresshould be classified into three groups: those entirely provided by Stateagencies, those partly provided by private certifiers and those entirelyprovided by private agencies.
She called for a clear criterion to selectqualified companies or organisations who could provide administrative services.
Deputy Director General of the Civil AviationAuthority of Vietnam Nguyen Van Hao said that the most important criterion inthe selection of private certifiers is to ensure security and safety.
Head of Inland Waterway Traffic Hoang Hong Giangsaid that the waterway traffic sector deals with about 300,000 procedures peryear, most of which relate to training and granting permits to enter or departfrom ports.
As eachprocedure is priced at 70,000 VND (3.08 USD), the yearly revenue fromadministrative procedures totals around 21 billion VND (920,000 USD), Giangsaid, adding that few companies are interested in providing such servicesacross 63 cities and provinces nationwide to gain such an amount each year.
The private sector could take over stages like receiving,delivering or checking applications which are currently completed by Stateagencies, Giang said.
Vice head of Vietnam Register Dang Viet Ha said that inrecent years, the Vietnam Register - a State body with functions andjurisdictions on the organisation and performance of technical supervision andcertification for quality and safety of means of transport – had someadministrative procedures completed by private companies.
“It’s worth noting that companies care about profit. If theycannot get profit, there is high possibility for ‘wrongdoings’ to happen,” Hasaid.
Le Van Dai, director of a vocational training centre underHanoi-based No2 Automobile Transport Company told Giao Thong Newspaper that private companies could help withdriver training, but driving licences must be granted by State bodies because“no-one should be ajudge in his own case.”
Nguyen Tien Minh, Director General of Vu Linh AutomobileJoint Stock Company, said that it would increase competitiveness if two orthree certifiers can evaluate the quality of new vehicles instead of just oneas currently.
“Companies would have more options to choose serviceproviders,” he said.
Minh added that few companies are interested in offeringservices relating to vehicles’ emissions because of the high investmentrequired, but it could still lure investors if there was a favourable legalclimate.-VNS/VNA