Quang Ninh Custom: Ready for a developing Van Don Special Economic Zone

Quang Ninh Customs will focus on building a team of strong professional skills and high sense of responsibility. Photo: T.Trang

In fact, for many years now, with the responsibility for managing both land and sea in the Northern key economic regions, Quang Ninh Customs always performs its role, functions and tasks well, contributing to the provincial socio-economic development and to the annual budget revenue of approximately 50% of the provincial revenue. Moreover, the leaders of Quang Ninh Customs Department also advises the provincial government on mechanisms and policies to facilitate export, import, immigration, trade, investment and tourism; drastic administrative reforms for preventing anti-smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit and drugs in the area. In addition, Quang Ninh Customs also actively coordinates with other authorities for national defence, social safety, and environment protection.

Hence, as Van Don – Quang Ninh is planned to become one of the key economic centers with many large-scale projects, forming a special economic zone, and in case this intention is approved by the National Assembly, the responsibility and role of Quang Ninh Customs are expanded sharply.

As can be seen, there are some key projects accompanied with Van Don special zone, such as: Van Don luxury resort complex; Northern Cai Bau port and urban area project (in the North of Cai Bau and Van Don ports); Non-tariff - Clean industrial zone in Van Don economic zone in Binh Dan commune, Cai Bau island, Van Don district; Van Don - Mong Cai Expressway through Mong Cai, Van Don, Tien Yen, Hai Ha and Dam Ha area.

Along with the investment in Quang Ninh airport - one of the key projects of Van Don special zone, is to create a driving force for development to attract investment and gradually build and develop it to become a large center of commerce, high-quality island eco-tourism; international aviation, high-class service center and international traffic hub; contributing strongly to economic growth and sustainable development for Quang Ninh province; to exploiting and promoting effectively the heritage value chain of Ha Long Bay and to assure the security and defense strategy in the sea and islands in the Northern coastal region.

Along with the strong socio-economic development of Quang Ninh province, the specific roles and responsibilities for management activities of Quang Ninh Customs will be set.

Mr. Bui Van Khang - Director of Quang Ninh Customs Department stated that the establishment of Van Don special economic - administrative unit will attract more investment projects. Therefore, Van Don will form many non-tariff areas, duty-free shops, bonded warehouses, international seaports ... At the same time, when the international airport is officially operating, the volume of import and export goods and visitors will significantly increase. These are the places that the customs authorities have to monitor and supervise.

Therefore, to facilitate export activities and ensure the state management of customs, Quang Ninh Customs Department has proposed the Ministry of Finance to establish a Customs Sub-Department to manage Van Don special zone according to the regulations on specific criteria mentioned in the Decision 2015 / QD-BTC.

Besides, the Director of Quang Ninh Customs Department also determined that this is both a development opportunity and a challenge for the customs management in the area. In order to meet the demand of important duty in the new period, Quang Ninh Customs has actively prepared with the spirit of "Development Creation - Active Creation - Practical Surveillance" and the motto " "Four follow-ups” and “Four Companions”, launching the 2018 of “Discipline, Integrity, Activeness, Determination”

In particular, Quang Ninh Customs will focus on building a team with strong professional skills, high sense of responsibility to adapt well to the development of Customs sector and Quang Ninh Province. The unit will revise, consolidate and rearrange the organizational structure of the Sub-department and its equivalent level, team/ groups under the direction of the Sub-department and its equivalent level in the direction of streamlined and centralized management. At the same time, Quang Ninh Customs is to focus on training with the “2 raisings” goal for the official staff, in which raising the sense of responsibility and improving the capacity for performing public duties. In particular, the unit stresses on integrity and personal responsibility, attaches importance to self-training in the direction of enhancing skills, ensuring that at least 70% of the official staff perform their skills well in each standardized sector according to the 2nd level of the proficiency framework (independent level of compliance).

At the same time, on the basis of tax policy, customs supervision is being finalized and modernized in the whole sector, Quang Ninh Customs continues to reform, modernize and accompany with enterprises with the aim of simplification of administrative procedures to achieve “3 reducings” goal: “Reducing procedures, reducing time and reducing costs for enterprises"; and “2 raisings”: "Raising the effectiveness, efficiency of management, efficiency of internal control and Raising the quality of enterprise caring"; Piloting the 24-hour business support model and setting up a 24/7 online support team through all channels: Website, Fanpage, leaflets ... The units will base their available resources on setting up a customer care department, regularly contact enterprises understand enterprises’ difficulties in depth to give consultation and recommendation to the authorities.

Over the past time, according to the assessment of the General Department of Vietnam Customs, Quang Ninh Customs Department is one of the dynamic, creative, active and innovative units and has had many breakthroughs in the processes of reform, development and modernization.

With a ready mind, Quang Ninh Customs will grasp the opportunities and conquer challenges to further affirm its position in the overall development of the Customs sector, Quang Ninh Province and the whole country.