Quyết định 327-CT

DECISION

MASTER GUIDELINES AND POLICIES TO UTILIZE UNOCCUPIED LAND, "BARREN" HILLY AREAS, FORESTS, DENUDED, BEACHES AND WATERFRONT

PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS

With reference to the laws to form the Council of Ministers, dated July 4, 1981.
The plan for the next 10-15 years lays the groundwork to restore denuded or "barren’’ hills and mountains, to protect the environment and forests and to exploit the potential of unoccupied land in the hilly regions, denuded beaches and waterfronts in order to increase the production of raw materials and commodities for industries. It will also lay the groundwork to divide the land, settle the population, link social and economic needs, as well as stabilize and raise the material and spiritual standard of living in the new economic zones, in order to stimulate the residents to increase their production efforts and consolidate the national security.

HEREBY DECIDED:

I. MASTER GUIDELINES

Article 1

According to the strategy for economic and social development to the year 2000, all government levels and branches must mobilize their efforts and financial resources to participate in the projects using the unoccupied lands, denuded hills and mountains, forests, beaches and waterfronts. The provinces in which these are found must develop projects to fully utilize the land within their territories;s the others must mobilize their inhabitants to participate in the projects in the neighboring provinces.

Article 2

Projects must correspond to the investment capacity of the people and must be related to dividing the land and settling the population in the frontiers. These must have priority, along with those that can have an impact in the near future. Projects for existing forests and farmlands, including those of the military, must be of a scope similar to that of the undeveloped areas. The forest, livestock and agriculture projects must include a production structure and be closely linked to the forest, agriculture, industrial and service sectors, as well as to commodity production, the processing industries and domestic and external markets. Further, it is necessary to increase the area of protected and reserved forests and head watersheds, and to clearly define where exploitation of lumber, firewood, or other forest products is prohibited or permitted.

Article 3

Households are considered the basic production units; state enterprises or collective economic units are supports on which to build; the "garden economy" must be developed for households. Close links must be made between households and the community, as well as between collective and state-run enterprises so as to expand production, protect the interests of each household; the Government and collective units must carry out their obligations; economic development must be linked to expanding social welfare; national defense and security must be ensured; and rural areas must be developed.

Article 4

It is important to stabilize villages where the land has been divided and the population settled as well as to undertake this process where it has not yet occurred. Where the populations are still nomadic and burn and destroy the forests for cultivation, they must be encouraged to develop farming settlements, plant trees, raise cash and food crops and livestock.

Article 5

The design and implementation of projects that focus on production should incorporate technical advances with manufacturing industries, consumption (of the products manufactured) and environmental protection.

II. POLICIES

A.LAND AND FORESTS ; POLICY TO HAND OVER THE LAND AND FOREST

Article 6

Afforestation schemes: These are designed to preserve and exploit (for production) the hilly areas, mountains and beaches, and protect, care for and replant forests of all types. Each household (including those already settled) will be given a certain area of land/forest to replant, protect and tend. This will occur according to priority orders, on the funding available for land, on the capacity of each household to work the land, on local living conditions (including those of newly settled families), on the investment capacity of the State, and on the labor and capital available from the economic entities. The total area for each project is 5,000-10,000 hectares, depending on the type of project envisioned, and will be equal to a commune or village in the highlands, in order to form the basic administrative, economic, social and national defense unit that would be suited to the investment capability of the Government and people.

With regard to projects to extract resin from pine forests (both from forest and industrial trees), each should be 3,500 hectares. Each household will be given a certain area of land (according to its capacity to work it and the availability of investment capital) to replant, manage, protect, and prepare for productive use.

In addition to these areas, each household (according to its labor potential) will be given additional arable land on which to plant short and long-tern industrial crops, as well as food crops, out of which each household is allowed to farm up to 5,000m2 for its own use and a piece of pasture land for breeding purposes.

Article 7

With regard to the projects to plant industrial crops such as rubber, mulberry (for silk), and fruit trees, as well as coffee, tea, sugar cane and cotton, the size of each project will be based on the size of the new commune. Each household will be given areas to plant the crops (mentioned above), the size of which will depend on its capabilities and the availability of investment capital. Households will have the use of these areas for a long period and can appropriate 3000m2 for their own agricultural use.

In the immediate future, projects of this kind should be based on agro-forestry services directed by the State. In unoccupied barren, land, there is potential to expand such projects, but they should first be carefully formulated and prepared.

Article 8

Within the livestock breeding projects developed at the commune level, each household will be given land to plant fodder or to raise animals. At the same time, each household will be given land on which to develop short- and long-term industrial crops, food crops and to cultivate a garden.

Article 9

For projects involving the use of barren beaches and those devoted to fish farming in areas of about 700 hectares (which could hold a commune), each household is given some land to raise shrimp, crabs and seaweed and 700m2 to cultivate. The State will invest in and assist the building of infrastructure, and will be reimbursed in discounted installments. Each household will finance the infrastructure for the fish farming through its savings or with bank loans. The investment needed to reclaim small beaches and waterfronts of less than 700 hectares will come from the local authorities or be given to households.

B. INVESTMENT POLICY

Article 10

The investment capital provided by the Government to develop vacant beaches and hilly areas (for afforestation, farming, human settlements and development of new economic zones) is from the following sources:

a. The Government budget,

b. Forest resource taxes, foreign aid and loans, and private investment from entities and individuals.

In particular, the forest resource tax will be targeted for investment in forestry programs. Of the total funds provided, 60% will be spent for the construction of infrastructure, for scientific and technical facilities, for public welfare services, for afforestation, for the planting of the reserve and special use forests, for the national genetic gardens, for resettlement of original residents, and for the first six months after land clearing. This capital will be directly invested with the project recipients and need not be reimbursed. The remaining 40% will be loaned to households without interest. Households will be expected to begin repaying the loans when the items are produced; terms of the loans will be defined according to the type of crops being produced.

Households entering new economic zones will be allowed to transfer the rights to the cultivated land and the residences being left behind in order to accumulate more capital to invest in the new locale.

The works of the new projects will not be obligated to keep aside 10% of the investment capital (for use by Government). However Ministries managing the projects will be allowed to take 5%-6% of the total investment capital to use for extension services, technology transfers and management efforts.

Article 11

The Government strongly encourages the development of commercial businesses, stockholding companies, corporations and private companies including joint ventures between companies or individuals and foreign entities, to invest in agricultural cultivation and livestock breeding in newly developed lands. These economic units will use undeveloped lands, hilly areas, beaches and waterfronts in a manner that is suitable to the land in each area and the investment capacity of each business (whether plantations, farms, etc.).

III. ORGANIZING, CARRYING OUT:

Article 12

From now until the year 2000, the Government has reserved a certain amount of capital to be invested each year for a program to plant and reforest the unoccupied coastal land, hilly areas and mountains. The program will begin in 1993, so as to actively prepare for 1994. SPC will determine in the near future the investment level for this program and will submit it to the Council of Ministers and National Assembly by the end of 1992.

Article 13

The Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Social Affairs are assigned the task of studying and making an early report to the President of the COM on the subsidy policies for transporting the households to be moved, temporary lodging, food and the cost of clearing the land in the first six months, to encourage the process (moving the households) and build the new economic zone.

The policy to cut or exempt taxes must be carried out according to existing laws. The Ministry of Finance will prepare the necessary amendments and additions to the draft version of the Agricultural Tax Laws to be submitted to the Council of Ministers and the Congress.

Article 14

Scientific and technical cadres, as well as managerial cadres who execute the projects, extension services and technology transfers will be given incentive salaries, especially if located in the highlands. If the projects are effective, they will be awarded bonuses. The Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Social Welfare are mandated to meet with other ministries to report to the Chairman of the Council of Ministers this matter.

Article 15

The primary ministries, in conjunction with the related ministries and agencies, must complete by the end of January, 1993 the organization plan up to the year 2000 for the agricultural, forest and maritime programs that will be the basis of the development plan of the projects described above. These ministries will also directly assist the provinces, districts and forest and farm camps to develop a number of pilot projects related to agriculture and forests by the end of 1992, so as to be ready to invest in 1993.

The projects described above must be considered carefully and be economic. But projects with an official plan and those that entail simple repairs under the technical cadres approval authority need not be designed again.

Article 16

The Ministries of Agriculture, Forestry and Aquatic Products, along with the Provincial People’s Committees and Central Cities’ People’s Committees should select the project directors and managers and transfer some existing agriculture and forest camps to the nationalized businesses based on Decree No. 388-HDBT of the Council of Ministers. This task must be completed in the first quarter of 1993 so it can be used as a guide for the family units’ production efforts.

Article 17

The following authorities have the responsibility to examine the projects.

- The chairman of the Council of Ministers will evaluate and approve large-scale projects in many provinces.

- Ministers of authorized ministries will evaluate and approve projects related to their ministries, and the projects to raise the marine products in the areas of over 700 hectares. The chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee will be responsible for examining the important aspects of the projects.

- The chairman of the People’s Committee of Provinces and Cities that belong to the central authority will be responsible for approving the project (in that province) and the projects related to the existing agricultural and forest camps which are under the provincial management. The chairman will also assume the management of all projects to be carried out within the province.

- Two national science centers and the State Science Committee are responsible for inspecting the details of the projects that relate to science.

Article 18

The State Planning Committee (SPC) will coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to examine the projects that need to be approved by the president of the Council of Ministers and to inspect the important aspects of some projects to be examined by the ministries and the People’s Committee of provinces and cities. SPC will put together all policies and investment plans of the projects for 1993 to be submitted to the COM. It will also prepare the plan for 1994. Once the plans are approved, the responsible ministries and localities will distribute the funds for the projects. The Ministry of Finance will inform the treasury to issue the funds directly to the project managers and to provide loans to the project managers and households, based on the plan for each project.

Article 19

In order to meet the needs of the projects, The Ministry of Labor, Veterans and Social Affairs is responsible for developing the policy to move workers and the population, for the policy with regard to the cadre and for the policy to manage and distribute the investment capital, in order to meet the needs of the projects.

Article 20

The ministries and Government committees that are related to the projects are responsible for selecting the expert cadres to undertake the projects, to promulgate (on time) the policies and guidance and give orders to agencies and those who work under them.

The Comrade Special Correspondent to the Council of Ministers is responsible for helping the Council and the President coordinate the effort between the branches and localities to inspect, direct and suggest the measures to carry out this resolution.