Quyết định 153/1999/QD-TTg

DECISION

ON A NUMBER OF SALT DEVELOPMENT POLICIES

THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government of September 30, 1992;
At the proposal of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development,

DECIDES:

Article 1.- Salt, including common salt (used as materials for production of kitchen salt), salt used for industrial production and kitchen salt (iodized salt), is an essential goods item for the people’s life and raw material for various industries, but the production thereof is still unstable and largely dependent on the natural conditions, and the salt makers still meet with difficulties in their life. For this reason, it is necessary to encourage organizations and individuals of all economic sectors to invest in development of salt production in order to fully meet the domestic consumption demand and then proceed to export.

1. Regarding salt production and consumption

a) The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the People’s Committees of the provinces and cities where salt is produced in revising and rearranging their salt production planning along the following direction:

- Bringing into full play the advantages of each region, linking kitchen salt-processing establishments to material salt-producing areas;

- Investing in installation of salt washing chains at industrial salt production areas in order to raise the salt quality; making use and process salt by-products (plaster and residual brine), and diversifying salt products;

b) Annually, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall work out plans for balancing the domestic salt production output and consumption volume on the basis of consumption demand (people’s daily life, industrial use and export), so as to set orientation for production and consumption enterprises;

- The Ministry of Industry shall direct chemicals enterprises using salt to give priority to the consumption of salt supplied by domestic industrial salt production establishments;

- Basing themselves on the annual domestic salt production and consumption situation, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Industry shall propose to the Prime Minister the plans for salt export and/or import to meet the demand for raw material salt for production of kitchen salt and chemical industry, and protection of domestic salt production;

- The People’s Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities shall direct enterprises, organizations and individuals trading in salt in their respective localities to promptly purchase salt at reasonable prices from salt makers.

c) After consulting the Government Pricing Committee, the presidents of the People’s Committees of the provinces and cities where salt is produced shall announce the minimum salt purchase price (flooring price) to the salt makers right at the beginning of each salt production season, closely direct and inspect the salt purchase, so as to preclude the salt purchasing organizations and individuals from devaluing salt quality or imposing low salt prices that cause losses to salt makers;

In cases where the sale purchase prices are lower than the set minimum price, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall have to propose to the Prime Minister the support measures to stabilize the salt production and the salt makers’ livelihood;

d) The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the National Reserve Department in determining the annual national salt reserves and formulating the mechanism for management of national salt reserves, then proposing it to the Prime Minister for decision.

2. Regarding the investment and credit

a) The State budget capital invested in the construction of infrastructure in salt production regions, including:

Dikes, sewers, vital irrigation projects and traffic roads, as well as investment in the construction of research or technology transfer institutions. Supports shall be rendered for the construction of schools, power stations, medical stations and rural clean water projects.

Initial investments shall be made in the construction of scientific research institutions, including: working offices, facilities and equipment, material and technical bases in service of scientific research and technology transfer;

b) Investment credit capital for projects ratified by the competent authorities, including:

- Investment in the construction of establishments for salt washing, plaster and residual saline processing and kitchen salt production;

- Building of industrial salt fields;

- Investment in renovation and upgrading of salt fields;

c) The State Bank of Vietnam shall direct the Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam and the credit institutions in implementing Decision No.67/1999/QD-TTg of March 30, 1999 of the Prime Minister on a number of credit and banking policies for agricultural and rural development, and providing sufficient and timely loans for salt makers to purchase raw materials, fuels and supplies for salt production, as well as loans for organizations and individuals to purchase and consume salt;

The Bank for the Poor shall also provide loans for the poor households meeting with great difficulties within the common capital quotas assigned by the State at the proposals of the administrations of communes where the salt makers reside;

d) The Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance shall seek capital sources from organizations and individuals at home and abroad for investment, joint venture, development of salt processing industry and large-scale industrial salt fields that can turn out salt qualified for industrial production and export.

3. Regarding the scientific and technological matters

All organizations and individuals are encouraged to conduct scientific research and transfer technologies to the salt production and processing.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall incorporate annual funds in its agriculture promotion plan for realizing salt production promotion contents in order to help salt makers produce salt and transfer technical and technological advances.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall work out plans for training of managerial, business and scientific-technical personnel in salt industry, including overseas training, in order to quickly build up a contingent of capable managerial, business and technical personnel in the salt industry.

4. Regarding the taxation

The Ministry of Finance shall study and propose to the Government for subsequent submission to the National Assembly the amendments to a number of tax policies along the following direction: exemption of agricultural land use levy for land used for salt production; and classification of kitchen salt and raw material salt among objects liable to value added tax with the tax rate of 0%.

5. Regarding the organization of salt production and consumption establishments

a) The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the People’s Committees of the provinces and cities where salt is produced shall rearrange and improve State enterprises, and renovate the management in State enterprises along the direction of providing services for material supply, product sale and processing; combine the salt production, processing and circulation; and encourage all economic sectors to organize the salt production, processing and circulation.

b) The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall direct the Vietnam Salt Corporation to build industrial salt production establishments and high-quality salt production establishments; supply salt to the mountainous areas; and support the concerned localities to establish salt cooperatives, especially salt sale cooperatives, to help salt makers promptly sell their salt.

Article 2.- This Decision takes effect 15 days after its signing.

Article 3.- The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government and the presidents of the People’s Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities shall have to implement this Decision.