National petroleum reserves meet nearly 10 days of use

On September 25, the General Department of State Reserves (DTNN) and the Ministry of Finance held a press conference to announce the situation of national reserve goods (DTQG) distribution to serve sudden and urgent needs and rice distribution to support localities and students according to the Prime Minister's decision.

Statistics from the General Department of State Reserves show that the amount of national reserve goods up to now can meet sudden and urgent situations. In particular, food items have completed 100% of the planned target assigned by the Prime Minister with the actual quantity of national reserve rice in stock at over 500,000 tons of rice, enough to supply to localities when situations occur on a large scale. Salt is currently in stock at over 70,000 tons, enough to supply to localities when natural disasters occur on a large scale.

The strategic commodity of petroleum is currently reserved at over 400,000 m3, reaching about 80% of the strategic orientation for the development of the national reserve until 2020, meeting the demand of about 10 days of use. Regarding crude oil, the General Department of State Reserves is currently implementing additional purchases to put into the national reserve in 2015 and 2016. Since the beginning of the year, the General Department of State Reserves has also urgently organized the purchase and warehousing of the categories of items assigned by the Prime Minister's Decision, including: high-speed boats; tents; life jackets; lifebuoys; fire-fighting equipment; hardware...

Regarding the free provision of national reserve goods, the General Department of State Reserves has provided a total of 77,172 tons of rice to carry out famine relief, aid people in provinces affected by natural disasters, and support students according to standards. Search and rescue equipment such as boats, life jackets, life rafts, and forest fire fighting equipment have also been provided in a timely manner to overcome the consequences of floods, especially the recent historic floods in Bac Giang and Quang Ninh.

Regarding rice support for students in schools in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions according to the Prime Minister's Decision, based on the results of approving the list of students who are beneficiaries of the policy by the People's Committees of the provinces. In the school years 2013-2014, 2014-2015, 2015-2016, the General Department of State Reserves has issued 138,262 tons of rice, of which: the support rate is 15kg of rice/student/month. In the school year 2015-2016, the General Department has supported 7,000 tons/14,181 tons of rice, the remaining rice is planned to be received by localities until September 30, 2015. Regarding the support of national reserve goods for local people during the Lunar New Year, crop failure and overcoming the consequences of natural disasters, since the beginning of the year, the General Department of State Reserves has exported a total of 32,120 tons of rice to the provinces suffering from hunger and drought according to the decisions of the Prime Minister.

Although the issuance of national reserve goods in recent times has basically met the government's relief needs, according to Mr. Le Van Thoi, Deputy Director General of the General Department of State Reserves, up to now, the total value of national reserve goods only accounts for about 0.21% of GDP. Of which, the ministries and branches manage about 72% (including: Ministry of National Defense 25%, Ministry of Public Security 12%, Ministry of Industry and Trade 30%; Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development 4%, other ministries and branches account for about 1%); the Ministry of Finance (General Department of State Reserves) manages about 28% of the total national reserve. The goal of the National Reserve Development Strategy to 2020 has set the total national reserve goods to reach 0.8-1% of GDP by 2015 and about 1.5% of GDP by 2020.

According to Hanoi Moi