tran thi thu hang deputy director general ministry of trade, vietnam
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Tran Thi Thu HangDeputy Director General
Ministry of Trade, Vietnam
FACTORS FACILITATING AND CHALLENGING NEGOTIATION OF
ENVIROMENT ISSUES IN RTA/FTA/WTO
VIETNAM ‘S EXPERIENCE
OUTLINE1.Environment issues in VN trade
agreements2.Vietnam Commitments on
environment services in WTO3.Challenging factors4.Facilitating factors5.Domestic coordination
Environment issues in Vietnam Trade agreementsState of play:Vietnam committed to liberalize
environment services in accordance with its GATS/WTO accession schedule
Vietnam is member of ASEAN Free trade area (CEPT) and joining ASEAN in FTA, CEP negotiation with Japan, Australia, India, USA… but no discussion on environment chapter
Environment issues in VN Trade agreements (cont’d)Vietnam engaged in more than 70
bilateral trade agreements with its trading partners. But no provision on environment protection or cooperation, except the Bilateral Trade Agreement with the USA (BTA) referring to Article 20 of GATT.
Vietnam is member of about 20 MEA where some trade related environment restriction provisions are applied.
Vietnam commitments on environment services in WTOVietnam started WTO accession negotiation
in 1995. The first offer was made in 2001 but no environment offer was presented.
In 2004, Vietnam concluded WTO accession negotiation package with EU at the margin of ASEM summit in Hanoi. The package included environment services . This paves the way for Ministry of Environment to make offer on environment services to be included in VN GATS offer in 2005
Vietnam commitments in WTO on environment services (1)Sewage Services (CPC 9401) :
no commitments made on cross border supply mode for market access and national treatment, except related consulting services.
No restriction on consumption abroad and commercial presence.
Apply 51 % cap on foreign ownership during 4 years after accession. Foreign companies are allowed to do business activities in Viet Nam in the form of build-operate-transfer (BOT) and build-transfer-operate (BTO).
Vietnam commitments in WTO on environment services (2)Refuse disposal services (CPC 9402):
no commitments on cross border supply mode for market access, except related consulting services.
No restriction on consumption abroad and commercial presence and NT.
Apply foreign ownership Cap 51 % during 4 years after accession. For public welfare, foreign-invested enterprises are restricted from collecting refuse directly from households, permitted to provide services at the refuse specific collection points. Import of refuse is forbidden.
Vietnam commitments in WTO on environment services (3)Cleaning services of exhaust gases (CPC
94040) and noise abatement services (CPC 94050): no commitments on cross border supply
mode and personal presence for market access and national treatment, except related consulting services.
No restriction on consumption abroad and commercial presence.
Apply foreign ownership Cap 51 % during 4 years after accession.
Vietnam commitments in WTO on environment services (4)Environmental impact assessment services
(CPC 94090*) : no commitments on personal presence for
market access and national treatment, except related consulting services.
No restriction on consumption abroad and commercial presence.
Apply foreign ownership Cap 51 % for commercial presence during 4 years after accession
Challenging Factors
Mandate is not clearly defined Competence factor: Regulatory competence
is not clearly allocated and dispatched among government agencies, especially environmental services regulations.
Political factor: environment services is a public services provided at almost zero fee and dominated by state monopoly. Liberalisation of environment services implies strong resistances.
Challenging FactorsLegislative factor: environmental and trade
related legislation is not completed and advanced.
Management factor: lack of common concepts about
environment services and its classificationEnvironment standards are not fully in
place and updatedLimited scope of environment services
provided in developing countries.
Challenging factorsCoordination factor:
Lack of coordination “mindset”Limited understanding about subject
matter and its scope by regulators/playersWeak overseeing and controlling
institutions among and within parties concerned
Not institutionalize new means of communication among government agencies (e.g emails, fax)
Challenging factorsConsultation factor:
Limited public participation in agenda setting and policy making due to: lack of active interest groups, lack of knowledge/awareness about environment issues
Weak role of business associations in trade-environment policies and debate
No institutionalized mechanism to take on board views from stakeholders. No public debate and monitoring mechanism after consultations
Challenging factors
Action factor:Limited awareness of businesses about
environment issues and their responsibility
Weak enforcement of laws, regulationsLack of dispute settlementsLimited human resource in trade related
environment regulation and negotiation
Facilitating factorsPolitical will: Every year, the Government
allocates 1 % GDP for environment protection (about 0.6 billion USD); about 200,000 -500,000 USD/year for trade related environment issues research
Common framework for actions or strategy is set, e.g 5 year Government Action Plan.
Social constituencyActive public campaign, awareness raising by
local authorities and environment departments
Facilitating factors• Leading role of “success business” in applying
ISO 14000 and creating environment friendly business
• Liberalize environment service ensures access to better and more affordable technologies for environment protection
• Environment friendly products = ease of exports
• Confidence building process through technical assistance from donors to provide arguments on the issues.
Domestic coordinationCoordination is institutionalized in laws/government regulations:Commercial Law in 2005;Law on environment protection in 2005;Laws on government organisation in 2001;National Plan on controlling environment
pollution till 2010 and strategies till 2020Government Decree 2005 governing
working mechanism of Ministries and government agencies
Domestic coordinationIntergovernmental working group
(Ministries of Trade, Environment, Planning and Investment and Finances) to jointly decide resources allocation for environment protection and balancing different priorities.
Intergovernmental negotiation team on environment issues
Coordinated actions among government agencies; central and local authorities are guided by 5 years/10 year action plans of the Government.
Thank you for your attention
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