VIETNAM LAWSAND IMPROVING THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT IN LINES WITH THE WORLD BANKS GUIDELINES

Dr.?? Th? Kim Tiên

1. The improvement of business environment for enterprises

The business environment is made up of interacting internal and external elements and conditions which are both objective and subjective， and can affect enterprises positively or negatively. Positive impacts can be a solid fulcrum for enterprises to develop. In a reverse direction， the business environment can also produce negative effects that retard businesses development. There are various types of determinants relevant to the business environment： economics， politics， culture， legality， science and technology， ... In this study， we shall discuss the legality factor in the business environment， with emphasis on law revision and refinement， aiming to reform the business and investment environment for Vietnamese enterprises.

The law is the way by which the State expresses its politic views on economic and social development and management objectives. As a management tool to be manipulated by the state， laws can affect the business environment in a formal and direct way. However， as laws are produced by idea， they have inherent limitations relevant to the objectivity and the ability to respond to the rapid transformation of changing economic practices. Being aware of this， countries， including Vietnam， are amending and revising the law in response to the reality. Vietnam still has generous room for business investment and development. According to the World Bank （WB）， the business environment in Vietnam has changed and improved. Doing Business of the WB does not consider all areas of the environment affecting business operations， but analyzes legal regulations that have direct effects on business operations. There are 10 such areas， listed as follows： （1） Starting a business; （2） Dealing with construction Permits; （3） Getting electricity; （4） Registering Property; （5） Getting credit; （6） Paying taxes; （7）  Protecting Investors; （8） Trading Across Borders; （9） Enforcing Contracts; （10）  Resolving Insolvency.

According to WB rating， Vietnam is ranked 98 out of 175 rated countries in 2005， 104/175 in 2006; 91/178 in 2007， 92/181 in 2008; 93/183 in 2009; 78/183 in 2010; 98/183 in 2011; and 99/183 in 2012. Also according to WB's judgment of the global business environment published on 29/10/2013， Vietnam stayed at 99/183 economies. However， since 2014 when the Investment Law and the Enterprise Law took effect， the investment environment in Vietnam has made rapid progress. In 2015， Vietnam's position was upgraded by 3 steps， from 93 to 90. Improved factors include： Starting a business （7 steps）; getting electricity （22 steps）; getting credit （8 steps）; paying taxes （4 steps）; resolving insolvency （2 steps）. By 2016 when some new legislations were issued， such as the Enterprise Law， Vietnams position was upgraded by 9 steps， with the score reaching 63.83/100 points， and the investment environment being ranked 82. By 2017， Vietnam got 67.93/100 points and was upgraded by 14 steps， rising to 68/190 rated economies. However， although Vietnam got 68.36/100 points in 2018， it dropped by 1 step to 69/190. In general， however， the investment environment in Vietnam has been improved remarkably since 2016. This results because the Vietnamese Government is determined to improve the legal system. Legal documents that act to change the business environment include the Investment Law （2014）， the Enterprise Law （2014）， the Competition Law （2017）， and Annual Resolutions No. 19 of the Government. To improve the investment environment and to enhance national competitiveness， since 2014， the Vietnamese Government has issued many Resolutions No. 19 / NQ-CP on this matter. Remarkably， during this period， the Prime Minister personally receives businesses and talks with them to listen to their voice to untangle problems relevant to control and inspection. On 17/5/2017， he issued Directive No. 20/CT-TTg to rectify control and inspection activities over enterprises， which is a problem that has discouraged businesses for many years.