Ta Huu Thanh, head of the State Inspectorate, recently pointed to an alarming rise in corruption among state officials. Corruption charges against 1,416 people had been filed as the result of about 3,500 inspections carried out in 51 provinces and cities and in more than 20 ministries and branch offices. After project approval, however, investors still have to secure land-use rights, construction permits and import quotas. They must also deal with compensation issues and secure a myriad of other permits by trudging from ministry to government department to local authorities' offices. There is an acute need for administrative reform in Vietnam.
Investors point to a lack of decision making and a lack of delegation of responsibility.
They have said the legal environment was in a constant state of flux as new rulings often adversely affected previously approved investments. Last October the number of government ministries was trimmed from 27 to 22. The former State Committee for Cooperation and Investment and the State Planning Committee were merged into the Ministry of Planning and Investment to bring domestic and foreign investment and planning issues under one umbrella. There is no one body responsible for issuing laws in Vietnam and ministries have overlapping responsibilities. Corruption has been targeted by the Communist Party as a threat to future development and received considerable attention in the country's five-year plan, mapped out at the national party congress held in late June.