Vietnam: Publishment Of National Action Plan Promoting Responsible Business Practices In Vietnam (2023-2027) – Anderson Mori & Tomotsune

In a significant stride towards enhancing responsible business
practices in Vietnam, Prime Minister issued Decision No. 843/QD-TTg
on July 14, 2023. This momentous decision marks the commencement of
a comprehensive national action plan (“NAP”) aimed at
promoting awareness of responsible business practices and ensuring
the policies and laws are in line with Vietnam’s international
commitments, especially the European-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement
(EVFTA) and Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for
Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). The plan spans the period of
2023 to 2027 and is set to have a far-reaching impact on various
sectors.

At its heart, the NAP lays out an extensive roadmap for the
assessment and refinement of specific laws and regulations in
pivotal areas such as investment, labor, environment, consumer
rights protection and personal data protection. By targeting these
areas, the NAP seeks to elevate the standards of responsible
business practices across the nation.

Key Highlights of the National Action Plan:

1. Investment Sector: Guiding documents for the
   Law on Bidding and the Law on Consumer Rights Protection are
   projected to be enacted by 2024. In a bid to enhance responsible
   business practices, the plan proposes the creation of an investment
   project screening toolkit. This toolkit is poised to facilitate the
   identification of projects that harmonize with the unique
   characteristics and priorities of each specific locality.




2. Labor Domain: Addressing labor relations, the
   NAP charts a comprehensive strategy for the evaluation, amendment,
   and introduction of new legislation. By 2025, a comprehensive
   report on enhancements to the Law on Occupational Safety and
   Hygiene, the Law on Social Insurance, and the Law on Employment is
   expected. Subsequently, by 2027, amendments and supplements to the
   Law on Trade Union will be enacted, accompanied by the release of
   corresponding guiding documents.




3. Vulnerable Groups Protection: Focus on the
   group of laws to protect vulnerable groups, the NAP considers the
   new enactments and revisions to align with the international
   standards of Law on Gender Equality, Law on People with
   Disabilities, Law on Children and their guiding regulations.
   Especially, Law on Transgender is expected to be newly issued by
   2025 for deploying the right to transgender in the Civil Code.




4. Environmental Focus: The NAP also delves into
   the realm of natural resources and the environment. The goal is to
   conduct thorough reviews and propose amendments, supplements, and
   new regulations. The relevant reports and recommendations are
   anticipated to be finalized by 2025.




5. Legal Proceedings and Sanctions: Revisions to
   the Civil Procedure Code, the Law on Commercial Arbitration
   together with their guiding regulations and other provisions
   governing administrative violation sanctions are also considered.
   Accordingly, the NAP sets out the deadlines for completion of
   reports and recommendations for revisions to Civil Procedure Code
   and administrative violation sanctions by 2027 and by 2025 for
   those of Law on Commercial Arbitration in order to accommodate
   Vietnam’s current economic and investment landscape. This will
   contribute to fostering responsible business conduct within the
   Vietnamese market.




6. Personal Data Protection: Notably, the NAP
   sets a plan to introduce the long-awaited Law on Personal Data
   Protection. This pivotal document is anticipated to consolidate
   regulations related to personal data protection, currently
   dispersed across various legal documents, and will impose stringent
   requirements to ensure the safeguarding of personal data.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.