Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung called for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) to simplify land administrative procedures to make them easier to complete.
The PM's request came at a meeting with MoNRE and relevant ministries yesterday on cutting administrative procedures in the field. They aimed to improve the business environment and raise national competitiveness.
Transparent procedures would reduce corruption and help build a workforce of professional, skilled civil servants, Mr. Dung said.
He urged 22 provinces to publicise the land procedures and 49 localities to open land registration offices. He also asked MoNRE to re-examine the exploitation of sand in rivers and study its impact on the environment.
It also needed to research whether granting licences to seaside projects damaged the environment, he added.
MoNRE Minister Nguyen Minh Quang said the ministry had already made strides to simplify natural resource administrative procedures.
According to Quang, the time needed to complete most procedures has shrunk. For instance, certificate-granting procedures have been cut by five days to 25, while in some provinces the procedures for land-use rights registration have been reduced by up to 50 percent.
Many ministries and sectors, however, said a number of regulations and administrative procedures in MoNRE needed to be revised.
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