Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha chaired a conference to gather feedback on draft decrees in the fields of agriculture and environment.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha chaired the conference at the Hanoi venue. The meeting was connected online to venues in provinces and cities across the country.

At the Nghe An provincial venue, Mr. Nguyen Van De, Member of the Standing Committee and Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, presided over the meeting. Leaders from relevant departments and agencies also attended.

In his opening remarks at the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha emphasized that the draft Decrees' scope, subjects, content, and policies closely adhere to practical requirements and ensure legal correctness and appropriateness. Localities, ministries, and sectors need to clarify the practicality and feasibility of the Decrees in their respective localities, thereby resolving difficulties and obstacles.

At the conference, representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment presented draft decrees amending and supplementing several articles of decrees in the following areas: nature conservation and biodiversity; dikes, embankments and disaster prevention and control; forestry and forest protection; water resources; sea and islands; regulations detailing some articles of the Law on Irrigation; and regulations detailing some articles and measures for implementing the Law on Fisheries.

Subsequently, leaders of ministries, sectors, and localities unanimously agreed on the necessity of issuing decrees amending and supplementing certain articles of decrees in the fields of agriculture and environment; they also focused on key issues and proposed specific solutions to ensure the feasibility, fairness, and transparency of the draft decrees.

Based on practical experiences from their localities, representatives from the provinces of Lam Dong, Son La, Da Nang, An Giang, etc., offered suggestions on several issues, including: Regarding water resources, localities proposed shortening the time for planning and renewing plans to meet development requirements and adapt to climate change; the application of thresholds and limits for groundwater exploitation should be flexible and linked to the results of surveys and water balance in each specific area.

Regarding the draft Decree amending and supplementing several articles of the Decrees in the field of forestry and forest protection, it is proposed to consider removing the content referencing the law on the management and use of public assets to avoid overlaps and "legal gaps," causing confusion when implemented at the local level (the Law on Management and Use of Public Assets already stipulates: The management, use, and exploitation of financial resources from natural resources shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law on natural resources and related laws). For the policy supporting the development of sustainable forest management plans and the issuance of sustainable forest management certificates, it is proposed to add enterprises linked with forest owners as eligible recipients, and to remove the requirement for an approved project, in order to align with practical realities, encourage enterprises to participate in sustainable forest management, and avoid wasting state budget resources.

In addition, delegates also proposed a coordination mechanism between the military and local police forces in the field of forest management; supplementing the mandatory consultation process for local military forces in changing the purpose of forest land use, opening and closing forest gates in border areas and islands… ensuring a clear mechanism and avoiding overlap in protecting national border security. The Legal Department needs to review and standardize the names of the Decrees…

Concluding the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha emphasized that the Decree must closely reflect reality. Therefore, the drafting of the Decree must ensure greater clarity and transparency than previous regulations, but only within the scope permitted by law. Reviewing and amending policies after they have been agreed upon is necessary to resolve issues, avoid turning one mistake into another, or making policies more complicated and difficult to implement. The Deputy Prime Minister also noted that the issuance of new regulations must clearly define the authority and responsibilities of each agency, and should not contain vague provisions.

Content that is not truly necessary or falls outside the scope of authority should not be included in the Decree to avoid further complicating policy.

Based on feedback from delegates attending the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha requested the drafting agency to review the drafts, with the Ministry of Justice as the final review body, responsible for ensuring consistency, legality, and feasibility when issuing the Decrees. Ministries and sectors are requested to provide feedback and send it to the drafting agency today so that the drafts can be promptly revised and finalized, and the Decrees can be issued before January 1, 2026.

The Deputy Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment to seriously consider the feedback, continue to refine the draft in a clear and feasible manner; and at the same time, strengthen dialogue and listen to opinions from localities and experts so that when issued, there are no different interpretations, ensuring stability and effectiveness in implementation…