Imprints in financial and budgetary consulting and management

(Baonghean) - Right from the first days of independence, President Ho Chi Minh issued Decree No. 73/SL-CTN dated September 18, 1945, giving the right to decide on the State tax collection level for the Zones and allowing the Zones' authorities to use tax revenue to ensure expenditure for the apparatus, and at the same time contribute to the Central Government to feed the army to fight the enemy.

After that, the Government Council issued important Resolutions and Decrees to implement the Charter on decentralization of financial and budgetary management to provinces and centrally run cities, regulating the responsibilities and powers of provincial and district-level State authorities in financial and budgetary management. In order to uniformly manage the national financial system, enhance the initiative and responsibility of agencies, organizations and individuals in managing and using the state budget, on March 20, 1996, the 9th National Assembly, 9th Session, passed the first State Budget Law of Vietnam and was supplemented and amended at the 3rd Session, 10th National Assembly (1998). On December 16, 2002, the State Budget Law was passed by the 11th National Assembly, 2nd Session, effective from 2004 to present.

Processing documents at the Department of Finance. Photo: Chau Lan

Along with the development of the Finance sector in general, the Finance sector of Nghe An province has closely followed the policies, orientations and regulations of the Central Government in managing local budgets, contributing to the successful implementation of the tasks of protecting the Fatherland and developing the local economy and society in each period.

Nowadays, with the open-door policy and international economic integration of the Party and the State, the Finance sector in general and Nghe An Finance sector in particular have carried out innovation, actively participated in the economic reform process, established a market economy under State management, following the socialist orientation. Finance has contributed to promoting innovation, maintaining economic growth, mobilizing and concentrating maximum resources, controlling the State budget deficit, stabilizing and improving the national finance, solving pressing social issues, maintaining national defense and security. Accordingly, Nghe An Finance sector has achieved the following results:

Firstly, budget collection in the province in recent years has had many positive changes, budget collection has always exceeded the estimate assigned by the Provincial People's Council, contributing to ensuring resources for implementing the province's socio-economic development goals. However, the local budget revenue (balanced revenue) in recent years has only met nearly 50% of the regular expenditure needs, while tax losses still occur in a number of areas, especially in the non-state economic sector... Therefore, to overcome the shortcomings in budget collection, find solutions to increase revenue, prevent revenue losses, prevent smuggling, trade fraud and have policies to encourage the exploitation and attraction of revenue sources, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued Decision No. 2219/QD-UBND dated June 18, 2012 on approving the Project "Increasing state budget revenue in Nghe An province by 2015" and Decision No. 5181/2014/QD-UBND dated October 10, 2014 on implementing the Project "Increasing state budget revenue in Nghe An province by 2020". In addition, the budget expenditure management mechanism is reformed to ensure the implementation of reasonable and effective expenditure plans and to ensure balance between budget revenue and expenditure.

Second, improving the investment environment: Implementing the direction of the People's Committee of Nghe An province in Decision No. 3373/QD-UBND.DT dated July 21, 2014 on approving the Project "Focusing on attracting effective investment in Nghe An province until 2020 and solutions to improve the investment environment, enhance the provincial competitiveness index", the Finance sector has seriously implemented the issues of strongly improving the investment environment of the province: Advising the Provincial People's Committee on allocating funding sources from the provincial budget to implement investment incentive mechanisms and policies in the province; advising the Provincial People's Committee on allocating funding sources from the provincial budget to build an infrastructure system to serve investors, following the direction of the Provincial People's Committee to concentrate resources to select investment in essential infrastructure in the Southeast Economic Zone, concentrated industrial parks in the direction of investment to serve investment attraction, not scattered investment and linked to investment efficiency; At the same time, submit to the Provincial People's Committee a plan to balance annual capital for site clearance. Continue to review and advise the Provincial People's Committee to adjust land prices in accordance with legal regulations and market realities; effectively overcome obstacles that affect the province's investment and business environment by promoting reform of administrative procedures, working style and manners of officials and civil servants.

Third, improve the financial management mechanism, especially the corporate financial policy towards increasing publicity and transparency of the financial situation of enterprises in the province. Encourage enterprises in the province to proactively approach and seek investment capital.

Fourth, accelerate the administrative reform process and improve the quality of the financial sector's management staff with capacity, professional qualifications and foreign language proficiency. In addition, Nghe An's financial sector has deployed and effectively applied the Treasury and Budget Management Information System (TABMIS) to serve the management and operation of the state budget.

Promoting the above important achievements, Nghe An Finance sector continues to make efforts, constantly learn and strive to excellently perform assigned tasks, contributing to the successful implementation of local socio-economic development targets. In that spirit, Nghe An Finance sector in general and the Department of Finance need to focus on implementing well the following 4 groups of tasks and main solutions:

Firstly, continue to focus on implementing financial and budget solutions to remove difficulties for production and business, restore economic growth, and create budget revenue.

Second, synchronously and effectively deploy operational solutions to ensure the implementation of revenue and expenditure tasks according to the estimates approved by the Provincial People's Council and People's Committee. Strive to increase revenue and thoroughly save expenditure; in which: focus on improving revenue management and operations, promoting the work of preventing revenue loss and handling tax arrears.

Third, strengthen measures to mobilize funding and synchronously and effectively implement solutions to promote ODA disbursement; promote attraction and improve the quality of foreign direct investment projects.

Fourth, continue to effectively implement the overall program of state administrative reform for the 2011-2020 period; focusing on administrative procedures on tax and customs; promote the application of one-stop and inter-connected one-stop mechanisms to reduce administrative procedures and apply information technology in management.

Nguyen Xuan Hai

(Party Secretary, Director of Nghe An Department of Finance)