Perfecting specific mechanisms and policies to improve the effectiveness of international integration

At the Group discussion, giving comments on the Draft Resolution on a number of specific mechanisms and policies to improve the effectiveness of international integration, delegate Tran Quoc Tuan - Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Director of the Department of Industry and Trade of Vinh Long province commented on Article 13 on the Export Promotion Fund for the industry and Article 14 on the use of trade defense tax to support businesses. The delegate said that these are two policies that have a direct impact on the competitiveness of the export industry and on the self-defense ability of the economy against the rapidly increasing integration risks.

At the Group discussion, giving comments on the Draft Resolution on a number of specific mechanisms and policies to improve the effectiveness of international integration, delegate Tran Quoc Tuan - Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Director of the Department of Industry and Trade of Vinh Long province gave comments on Article 13 on the Export Promotion Fund for the industry and Article 14 on the use of trade defense tax to support businesses.

Delegates said that these are two policies that have a direct impact on the competitiveness of the export industry and on the economy 's ability to defend itself against rapidly increasing integration risks.

Regarding Article 13 on the establishment of the Export Promotion Fund for the industry, delegate Tran Quoc Tuan said that the policy of establishing the Fund is correct and necessary, especially in the context of international competition moving to a high-standard stage, requiring traceability and greening of the value chain. However, businesses and localities have expressed three major concerns, so the National Assembly delegates need to consider carefully in the stage of finalizing the resolution.

The risk of “voluntary becoming mandatory”: Delegates believe that it is absolutely correct to encourage industry associations with high export proportions to establish an Aviation Industry Export Promotion Fund for profit purposes. However, if a clear legal framework is not designed, voluntary contributions can become a cost burden, especially for small businesses or businesses that are new to exporting in the short term...

Require absolute financial transparency for this fund source: Experience from a number of industry funds in recent times shows that if there is a lack of transparency, the Funds will lose confidence and cannot operate effectively. Therefore, delegates recommend that the Government, when guiding Article 13, must stipulate 100% transparency of revenue and expenditure, annual independent audits and mandatory reporting to the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Finance .

It is necessary to avoid dispersion and duplication between association funds: In reality, an industry with many associations will lead to many funds, dividing resources and reducing promotion efficiency. For example, the seafood industry has many associations by region or by product type, and when an anti-dumping lawsuit occurs with shrimp, pangasius, etc., if there is no unified coordination mechanism, businesses will have a divided voice, litigation costs will increase and efficiency will be reduced.

From there, delegates proposed that only associations representing at least 30-50% of the market share would be allowed to establish the Fund. At the same time, regulations on the Fund's objectives must be clear, focusing on three strategic task groups: promoting key markets; supporting green transformation to meet EU and US standards; and building brands for Vietnamese industries.

Regarding Article 14 on the use of trade defense taxes to support businesses, trade defense is currently becoming the number 1 bottleneck of Vietnam's exports. According to Vietnam.vn, by mid-2025, Vietnam had faced more than 291 trade defense cases, from 25 markets... Many businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, do not have enough funds to participate in lawsuits, leading to unjust loss of markets. Article 14 of the Draft allows for the allocation of trade defense tax revenue to support businesses; according to delegates, this is a step forward, in line with international practice and in line with urgent needs.

However, to effectively implement the policy, delegates recommended clarifying four major orientations:

(1) It is necessary to stipulate a minimum deduction rate to avoid “paper support”. If a specific deduction level is not determined, many localities and associations will have difficulty accessing resources. Through actual surveys, most businesses propose to deduct at least 30-40% of trade defense revenue allocated for defense work.

(2) Priority should be given to supporting industries with high risks and large export contributions, including: seafood, rice - vegetables, coconut, wood - furniture, textiles, energy - batteries, steel. For example, the seafood industry is currently being pressured by the US's 20% fair tax and the US's anti-dumping tax... making the Vietnamese seafood industry very difficult at present. These are industries that are facing many accusations of "non-market", evasion, and cross-border.

(3) There needs to be a clear direction for this support source, not only to solve the “litigation” problem but also to support the conversion of compliance models. Currently, most businesses are in dire need of support in building traceability records, standardizing processes, meeting environmental standards… This is the decisive factor for standing firm in the US and EU markets.

(4) The role of localities in trade defense needs to be clarified. Most lawsuits require production, cost, and labor data from the provincial level. Therefore, it is necessary to stipulate a coordination mechanism: establish a "trade defense rapid response" team at the provincial level; coordinate synchronously with customs agencies and industry associations; and at the same time, it is necessary to stipulate training for businesses to avoid unintentional "origin evasion".

To improve the effectiveness of international integration, delegates hope that the National Assembly and the Government will consider supplementing the content of this resolution, corresponding to three fundamental orientations:

First , it is necessary to build a national early warning system for trade defense. The international market fluctuates hourly, but businesses often know too late when foreign countries have filed lawsuits. Vietnam needs a real-time warning system, connecting data from Customs - Department of Industry and Trade - Commercial Counselor.

Second , it is necessary to invest in laboratories - standardizing international standards in key areas. Most enterprises in the Mekong Delta when exporting agricultural and aquatic products... have to send samples to Ho Chi Minh City, increasing costs, wasting time, and slowing down the speed of meeting standards. According to delegates, deep integration requires inspection infrastructure to be one step ahead.

Third , it is necessary to improve the capacity of industry associations. Industry associations must be the “frontline” force in promotion, defense, and information sharing to standardize standards. If the association is weak, both the Promotion Fund (Article 13) and the support source from Article 14 will find it difficult to be effective.

Delegate Tran Quoc Tuan said that international integration today is not only an opportunity but also a competition in law, technology and standards. The two mechanisms in Articles 13 and 14, if designed sharply and implemented effectively, will help Vietnam increase its internal strength, proactively respond, and expand its market sustainably. This is the time for us to shift from “participating in integration” to “leading integration”, to protect the legitimate interests of Vietnamese enterprises and consolidate the country’s position in the global supply chain.

YEN NHU (recorded)

Source: https://baovinhlong.com.vn/kinh-te/202511/hoan-thien-co-che-chinh-sach-dac-thu-nang-cao-hieu-qua-hoi-nhap-quoc-te-a0e37f7/