SOCIETY IN BRIEF 12/7

Tighter consumer protection sought

Consumer protection activities in recent years have progressed well, but more time is needed to ensure full coverage, a ministry official has said.

Nguyen Phuong Nam, deputy director of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Competition Management Department, said that Viet Nam had been in a recession, and that only the most developed countries could offer the best protection for consumers during this period.

Customers shop in HCM City’s District 7. Consumer protection activities have progressed well over recent years but northern provinces lagged behind. (Photo: VNS)

Nam was speaking at a conference held yesterday, July 11, in HCM City to review the Consumer Production Law, which became effective two years ago.

He said that consumer protection activities had been carried out well in the provinces of Tien Giang, Kien Giang, Binh Duong and Vung Tau. However, northern provinces lagged behind in such activities, he added.

For the last two years, the local departments of industry and trade have received 550 consumer-protection cases annually, and more than 90 per cent of them have been solved.

These figures do not include cases carried out at associations and organisations that were established to protect consumer rights.

The number of cases has been limited, but it shows that consumers have begun to realise their rights, according to the department.

Some participants at the conference, however, did not agree.

“Consumer protection activities in the country are not that active. Two years have passed, and consumers still have not understood their eight basic rights,” said Nguyen Van Hau, deputy chairman of the HCM City Lawyers Association.

Some understand the law but others were afraid to take their case to court.

Pham Thi Viet Thu, deputy chairman of the HCM City Consumer Rights Protection Association, agreed with Hau, saying that violators of consumer rights had received light punishments.

To remedy the weaknesses of the law, conference participants proposed amending the law and strengthening people’s understanding about their rights.

In addition, the skills of staff working at consumer rights organisations, departments and associations also needed to be improved, they said.

Nam reassured the conference attendees that progress would continue as the department had proposed changes on penalties and punishments, and was waiting for approval from the Government.

Beginning next year, staff who work in the consumer-protection field in provinces and cities will be sent to other countries to improve their skills.

HCM City tuition fees to rise while medical service fees held

The HCM City People’s Committee has decided to delay raising medical service fees at public hospitals due to concerns over financial pressures facing residents, according to city officials.

Last week, the committee had submitted a fee-increase proposal to the city People’s Council but it later withdrew the proposal at the council’s meeting on July 10.

The city budget for healthcare rose by 17.6 per cent to VND2.4 trillion (US$115.4 million) this year from VND2.05 trillion (US$98.6 million) in 2012.

Hospitals in the city provide care to local residents as well as people from other provinces. The fees were to increase by 1.5 times.

Nguyen Thi Quyet Tam, chairwoman of the city People’s Council, said the fee hike for medical services was necessary as other cities and provinces nationwide had already applied higher fees.

Meanwhile, Ha Noi’s People’s Council approved new fees that will be effective on August 1.

Because the HCM City People’s Council decided to increase tuition fees, it wanted to spare local residents another fee hike, according to Tam. Thus, the higher healthcare fees would be postponed.

She said the council had delayed the tuition hike for a very long time, and could no longer postpone it.

Despite the decision to not raise fees, the city would continue to invest in the health sector’s development, she said.

Hua Ngoc Thuan, deputy chairman of the city’s People’s Committee, said the committee next year would propose raising medical fees by 10 per cent per year.

By 2016, the medical services fee would reach its ceiling rate, a rate that was established in joint circular No. 04 issued by the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Health.

The hike in tuition fees, which is three to six times the current level, will be applied soon. The fee amount will vary according to the grade level (kindergarten, primary schools, high schools).

HCM City’s labor demand on the rise

The labor demand in HCMC rose by one-third in the second quarter compared to the previous one, according to the HCMC Center of Forecasting Manpower Needs and Labor Market Information (FALMI).

Tran Anh Tuan, deputy director of FALMI, said enterprises in HCMC need an estimated 30,000 laborers this month alone, with the demand for manual laborers accounting for 40%, skilled workers and those of basic vocational level 15%, workers of intermediate vocational level 20% and college graduates 25%.

The demand for manual workers continues to rise in the sectors of textile-garment, leather footwear, packaging, sales, services and hotel-restaurant. Specifically, the demand for salespeople accounts for nearly 27% of the total, services nearly 11%, and marketing and PR 6.48%.

New graduates from colleges and universities supplement a large number of laborers to the labor market this month.

However, the imbalance between supply and demand, especially the demand for college graduates, will become more serious. Employers will still focus on recruiting those with skills and qualifications.

According to FALMI, over 50% of new graduates lack practical knowledge, soft skills and thus are unable to find suitable jobs.

Besides, the labor supply in some sectors such as accounting, human resources, construction, finance-banking and management is always higher than the demand.

Therefore, there are quite many graduates doing jobs other than their majors or lower than their abilities as they are unable to find suitable jobs.

Overseas Vietnamese backed

Vietnamese citizens abroad who are struggling financially or facing life-threatening diseases such as cancer, paralysis or serious injuries from accidents will soon be able to get financial aid from the Fund for Assisting Overseas Vietnamese Citizens and Legal Entities.

Under the Finance Ministry’s newly-issued regulations on financial management for the fund, Vietnamese citizens requiring protection from war, natural disasters, epidemics and terrorism will also be able to claim financial support from the fund.

It is also designed to help trafficked women and children return home.

With an initial investment of VND20 billion (US$952,000) from the State budget, the fund will offer support abroad by paying for essential transport, food, medical expenses and temporary accommodation. It will also cover the cost of tickets home.

All Vietnamese people living abroad are eligible for the support, excluding those who have bought local insurance.

The new regulations will take effect from October this year.

After being set up in 2007, the first act of the fund was to assist 108 Vietnamese fishermen arrested in Indonesia in their bid to return home.

All individuals and organisations inside and outside the country are invited to raise money for the fund.

Northwest told to curb poverty

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has urged north-western provinces to accelerate work on sustainable poverty reduction and regional connectivity, and praised the remote, mountainous region’s many positive achievements during the first half of this year.

The Deputy PM pointed out orientations for development when he chaired a conference of the Steering Committee for the northwestern region, which was attended by senior officials from relevant central agencies and 14 regional provinces.

The conference, held in the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang yesterday, aimed to review progress achieved during the first six months and discuss measures to fulfill this year’s development targets.

Phuc said that in the first half of 2013, northwestern localities worked hard to bring into play their advantages while also improving infrastructure and facilitating new investments.

Major economic indicators were positive with a GDP growth over the first half of the year at 8.8 per cent and budget revenues increasing by 14.3 per cent compared to the same period last year.

However, Phuc said the localities needed to improve education and training and healthcare, while prioritising key projects, raising the quality of human resources and preserving the cultural identities of ethnic minorities.

He stressed the necessity to build a strong political system at grassroots levels, fight the sabotage plots of hostile forces and prevent factors that may cause instability.

He said the first six months had also seen security and national sovereignty ensured while leadership and management quality of local authorities also improved.

However, participants also highlighted difficulties that people face in resettlement areas and the failings and ineffectual leadership from some authorities.

Economic zone desperate for trained workforce

Deputy PM Nguyen Thien Nhan yesterday, July 11, ordered central Ha Tinh Province agencies to co-operate with Vung Ang Economic Zone enterprises to make quarterly reviews of their work-force demands.

The Deputy PM said this would enable local training centres to train workers for the economic zone enterprises.

With Government approval, the Ministry of Education and Training and provincial People’s Committee have assigned local training centres to educate 2,400 young people to serve the zone’s labour demand.

It has also established a centre to promote trade and supply high-quality personnel for the zone. The committee has spent VND164 billion (US$7.7 million) for training in four years.

About VND585 billion ($27.4 million) has been provided from the State budget to support the training of workers since 2009.

Vung Ang Economic Zone was set up under a Government’s decision issued in 2006, covering nearly 23,000ha.

It is one of five key economic zones in the country. The economic zone is now home of 226 enterprises and employs nearly 12,500 workers.

According to initial statistics, the economic zone needs an additional 55,000 workers by 2015.

More Gov’t officials to be trained abroad

As many as 150 senior officials and directors across Vietnam will be trained in leadership skills and management of human resources in Singapore this year.

The officials, who are district Party secretaries and chairpersons of People’s Committees at district level, will participate in six training courses run by Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University under a programme designed to train governmental officials and directors abroad.

The office of Programme 165 told a meeting in Hanoi on July 11 that the courses are scheduled to take place from August to December this year.

Under a cooperation agreement signed between the office and the Singaporean university in June 2012, four training courses have already been held, helping improve the capacity of 100 officials.

All knowledge and experiences they gained from the training have been shared with more than 2,000 people.

At the meeting, the northern province of Quang Ninh and the Centre for Public Administration under the Singaporean university also agreed to cooperate in training provincial officials this year.

VNN/VOV/VNS/VNA/SGT

SOCIETY IN BRIEF 12/7