Coordinate with ministries and sectors to implement reform of quality inspection and food safety inspection model

Hanoi Customs officials inspected import – export goods. Photo: N.Linh

Need synchronisation

Decision 38/QD-TTg of the Prime Minister approving the scheme on reforming the model of quality inspection and food safety inspection for imported goods with seven major reform contents. To implement this task, Deputy Director of Vietnam Customs Mai Xuan Thanh said the tasks of the Ministry of Finance, the General Department of Vietnam Customs as well as ministries and agencies would be very large and required synchronisation. As for the Ministry of Finance (the General Department of Vietnam Customs), with the responsibility assigned by the Government in the decision, the ministry will drastically implement solutions.

In Decision 38/QD-TTg, Chairman of the National Steering Committee on ASEAN Single Window, National Single Window and Trade Facilitation (Commission 1899) will direct the implementation of the scheme with tasks such as directing to review items subjected to specialised inspection under the management of line ministries to reduce and overcome the overlap in management and inspection between sector and management ministries. The 1899 Committee directs line ministries to review, formulate and submit to the Government and the National Assembly to amend legal documents in specialised inspection such as legal documents, ordinances, decree; direct the formulation of a decree on the management mechanism, mode, order, and procedures for quality inspection and food safety inspection of imported goods to serve as the legal basis for the implementation of the fundamental reform in the Scheme; directing and inspecting the implementation of the scheme. Yo implement the scheme, the Prime Minister also assigned to establish Deployment Team led by the Director General of Vietnam Customs, the members are representatives of the leaders at the general department and department level under ministries managing the sector and domains, as well as representatives of units under and directly under the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

Specific responsibilities of the ministries and sectors

For ministries and sectors, specific tasks are also assigned. In particular, the Ministry of Finance developed a detailed plan to implement the assigned tasks in the scheme; work with concerned ministries managing sectors, domains and localities to implement the scheme; supervise the implementation of the scheme; chair to formulate and submit to the Government for promulgation a decree prescribing the management mechanism, modes, order and procedures for quality inspection and food safety inspection of imported goods; work with ministries managing sectors, domains and localities to synthesise and evaluate the effectiveness of quality inspection of import goods under new models from 2021 to 2023, coordinating with line ministries to propose the amendment of the law on quality and food safety based on the best international practices.

The Ministry of Finance has invested in equipment, machinery and human resources for units and organisations of the customs authority that satisfy national standards and international standards for conformity certification organisations, recognised in accordance with the Law on Standards and Technical regulations to conduct inspection/certification of imported goods complied with the regulations; notify line ministries about cases in which the customs authority found the certification/inspection results of inspection organisation are inconsistent with actual imported goods or violate regulations of the law on quality inspection and food safety inspection.

Ministries managing sectors, fields, develop detailed plans to implement assigned tasks in the scheme; examining and inspecting the performance of inspection organisations in accordance with specialised laws; to direct, urge, guide and inspect implementation of the scheme in the units under the management of the ministries managing sectors, domains or localities; perform the function of state management on quality and food safety of imported goods; to formulate the legal policies on the management of quality and food safety of goods.

At the same time, ministries and sectors should coordinate with the Ministry of Finance in implementing the scheme; developing a decree of the Government on the management mechanism, mode, order and procedures for quality inspection and food safety inspection for imported goods; building a centralised database on risk management in quality inspection and food safety inspection for import goods for sharing and integrating information among stakeholders on quality, food safety and timely detecting, preventing and handling imported shipments ineligible for food quality and food safety; training customs officials to inspect quality and food safety of imported goods; promulgate and publish on the National Single Window the list of import goods subject to quality inspection and food safety inspection with HS code at the most detailed level; technical regulations/standards applicable to imported goods on the list; appointing the inspection organisations and the units and organisations of the customs authority capable of performing inspection as prescribed.

At the same time, ministries are responsible for strengthening the inspection of all quality inspection and food safety inspection activities performed by relevant agencies, organisations and enterprises; research and applying traceability, inspection at source; apply the recognition and accreditation of quality of import goods produced by advanced technology and originating from countries and territories having high quality standards to reduce the percentage of consignments subject to inspections.