New Director General Nguyen Van Can: Continues efforts to affirm the role and position of Customs

New Director-General of General Department of Vietnam Customs, Mr Nguyen Van Can. Photo: Quang Tan

Customs reporter: First, congratulations to you on your appointment as Director-General of the General Department of Vietnam Customs. Please tell us about your feelings now?

Director General Nguyen Van Can:

First of all, I would like to sincerely thank my comrades in the Party Commission, the Head of the Ministry of Finance and my colleagues in the General Department of Vietnam Customs for their attention and trust in me as the new Director-General. I am also grateful for the support and help of the collective leaders of the General Department of Vietnam Customs and all civil servants, employees of Customs through the ages.

I am acutely aware that the role of the Head of Vietnam Customs is a great honor and a great responsibility. Especially in the current context, Customs should continue affirming their role, creating reforms, and contributing to the development of the economy, society, and the process of international integration.

I will try my best along with the directing staff of the General Department of Vietnam Customs to proceed on implementing reforms, innovation and modernization of customs, building up formal, professional, modern, transparent Customs services, facilitating further benefits for export-import operations, while improving the capacity and efficiency of State management in Customs.

No office-level in the General Department of Vietnam Customs VCN- Based on Decision No. 65/2015 / QD-TTg of the Prime Minister, December 17, 2015 defining the ...

Customs reporter: Dear Director-General, in recent times, the General Department of Vietnam Customs has made great effort and achieved great success, importantly contributing to the achievements of the Ministry of Finance, facilitating the development of the economy, society and international integration of the country. However, there are still several limitations, difficulties, challenges for Customs. With your new position, please tell us about the central objective of Vietnam Customs and your own personal objectives as Director –General, and your priorities of implementation in the near future?

Director General Nguyen Van Can:

Since its establishment, Customs has shown its continuous effort and achieved many accomplishments, which have been recognized by leaders of the Party, the State, the Ministry of Finance, the business community and citizens. It is a collective effort, of many generations of civil servants, employees of Customs who have nurtured its development for more than 70 years of construction and improvement of Vietnam Customs. However, in order to meet the requirements and tasks in the new situation, we have to face up with a greater number of difficulties and challenges.

The year 2016 is very important, because it is the first year the country begins implementing the Resolution of Congress XII of the National Party; the first year the senior leaders of the Party, the National Assembly, the Government of 2016-2020 will take responsibility for the activities of the country.

For the General Department of Vietnam Customs, in 2016, the Party of General Department of Vietnam Customs will implement the Resolution of the new term (the fifth period, 2015-2020) and the first year of the process of the development and modernization plan in the period 2016-2020 and on the way of Customs development strategy to 2020 approved by the Prime Minister.

In many years, the process of reform and modernization in Customs has been recognized by the Party, the State and the business community, for instance: the Vietnam Automated Cargo Clearance System (VNACCS/VCIS); the National Single Window, ASEAN Single Window, etc. However, these are just initial achievements.

In the years to come, the process of Customs modernization should aim to achieve higher goals to ensure the correct spirit of innovation, reform of Customs Act 2014, while focusing on improving the efficiency of inspection and supervision in the direction of depth and professionalism. Especially duties of inspection and supervision must be carried out on the basis of management information systems, before, during and after Customs clearance, synchronously connected with the application of modern equipment.

Customs will conduct a review and a comprehensive assessment of its achievements, point out the limitations and problems, especially in the implementation of the provisions of the Customs Act to continue reforms, practical innovation, efficiency; trade facilitation, investment; enhancing State management capacity building in the Customs.

During workforce building, Customs will implement Decision 65 / QD / TTg of the Prime Minister defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the General Department of Vietnam Customs regarding streamlining, effectiveness, consistent with the provisions of the Customs Act 2014 and the amending Act on export-import tax. Customs will continue with research to promulgate regulations on building formal, professional, modern Customs staff, which is suitable for specific activities of Customs; strengthen discipline in performing official duties, and associate commendation with strict discipline.

A key task is to regularly focus on promoting the activities against tax losses, arrears, concentrating on investment activities, import-export of the business community and the resources to complete the task of revenues, while helping to ensure national financial resources.

Along with the operation to facilitate trade and investment as above, Customs should strengthen effective solutions, management through activities against smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeiting, advise the Head of Ministry of Finance to implement the role of the National Steering Committee 389; strengthen risk management, post-clearance checks and help to stabilize security and community safety.

Vietnam Customs will expand and strengthen international cooperation with Customs of other countries in the framework of the World Customs Organization (WCO) in order to prevent and combat transnational crimes such as forgery of origin to make use of tariff preferences; fraud in value, quantity and weight of goods, etc. This is very necessary in the context of deep integration into the world economy and Vietnam is involved in numerous bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements.

In the long term, Customs must continue embracing and implementing the goals set out in the Customs Development Strategy to 2020, building Vietnam Customs to achieve the same level of efficiency as the advanced and developed countries of the world.

Customs reporter: On this occasion, would you like to send messages or something to all civil servants, employees in the Customs?

Director-General Nguyen Van Can:

As mentioned above, the Party Commission and the  Minister of Finance decided to select and appoint me to the position of Director-General from within Vietnam Customs, demonstrating confidence in the General Department of Vietnam Customs and in me personally.

With more than 70-years of building and maturation, Vietnam Customs has achieved many successes and achievements thanks to the efforts of all civil servants and employees in the Customs service.

I look forward to receiving the support, attention, leadership, direction and facilitation from the Party Commission and leaders of the Ministry of Finance; the coordination of the units under the Ministry of Finance; leaders of Ministries, agencies and the business community. Especially I look forward to the solidarity, support and companionship of the collective leadership of the General Department of Vietnam Customs, leaders of divisions and all civil servants and employees in Vietnam Customs.

On this occasion, thanks to Customs Newspaper, I desire and call all civil servants, officers, employees in Customs to continue to promote the long tradition and unity to build professionalism, modernization, operational effectiveness and efficiency in Vietnam Customs.

Customs reporter: Thank you very much. We wish you achieve more success in your new position of Director-General!