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BỘ NGOẠI
GIAO
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CỘNG HÒA XÃ
HỘI CHỦ NGHĨA VIỆT NAM
Độc lập - Tự do - Hạnh phúc
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Số:
31/2013/TB-LPQT
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Hà Nội, ngày
31 tháng 5 năm 2013
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THÔNG BÁO
VỀ VIỆC ĐIỀU ƯỚC QUỐC TẾ CÓ HIỆU LỰC
Thực hiện quy định
của Luật Ký kết, gia nhập và thực hiện điều ước quốc tế năm 2005, Bộ Ngoại giao
trân trọng thông báo:
Hiệp định giữa
Chính phủ nước Cộng hòa xã hội chủ nghĩa Việt Nam và Chính phủ Liên bang Thụy Sỹ
về Chương trình "Nâng cao năng lực cạnh tranh xuất khẩu của doanh nghiệp
nhỏ và vừa Việt Nam thông qua hệ thống xúc tiến thương mại địa phương", ký
tại Hà Nội ngày 31 tháng 5 năm 2013, có hiệu lực kể từ ngày 31 tháng 5 năm
2013.
Bộ Ngoại giao
trân trọng gửi bản sao Hiệp định theo quy định tại Điều 68 của
Luật nêu trên./.
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TL. BỘ TRƯỞNG
KT. VỤ TRƯỞNG
VỤ LUẬT PHÁP VÀ ĐIỀU ƯỚC QUỐC TẾ
PHÓ VỤ TRƯỞNG
Nguyễn Văn Ngự
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PROGRAM AGREEMENT
BETWEEN
THE
GOVERNMENT OF THE SWISS CONFEDERATION
represented by
The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO)
AND
THE
GOVERNMENT OF THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
represented by
The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)
ON
"Decentralized
Trade Support Services for Strengthening the International Competitiveness of
Vietnamese Small and Medium-sized Enterprises"
June 1, 2013 - May 31, 2007
Within the Framework
Agreement concerning Cooperation and Development signed by both Governments on
June 7, 2002, in Bern, the Government of the Swiss Confederation (hereinafter
referred to as the "Government of Switzerland") and the Government of
the Socialist Republic of Vietnam {hereinafter referred to as the
"Government of Vietnam") bearing regard to the ties of friendship
existing between the two countries and with the objective of enhancing their
development cooperation, have agreed on the following:
ARTICLE
1. FIELD OF COOPERATION
The Government of
Switzerland shall continue to support the Government of Vietnam in its efforts to
contribute to sustainable economic growth by a better integration into the
world trading system. Trade is recognized as an important driver of economic
development and hence poverty reduction. The cooperation, therefore, is
focusing on developing sustainable trade which creates jobs and generates
income in dynamic but less developed regions of Vietnam by increasing the
international competitiveness of exporting SMEs through an effective
decentralized trade support infrastructure.
This cooperation shall
be known as “Decentralised Trade Support Services for Strengthening the
International Competitiveness of Vietnamese Small and Medium sized Enterprises”
(herein after referred to as “the Program”).
ARTICLE
2. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
2.1. The development
goal and objectives of the Program are as follows:
Development goal: to
contribute to sustainable and inclusive economic growth by facilitating trade
development, and more specifically, the effective implementation of the
National Export-Import Strategy 2011-2020 which aims at strengthening the
performance of the export sector.
Overall objective: to
increase the international competitiveness of exporting SMEs in Northern-,
Central- and Southern Vietnam through decentralized trade support services.
The Program pursues
the following three immediate objectives:
Immediate objective 1:
Effective use by regional SMEs of professional trade development services
provided by strong and sustainable Regional Trade Support Networks;
Immediate objective 2:
A stronger national trade supporting environment is facilitating SME exports;
and
Immediate objective 3:
Vietnam’s Trade Promotion Agency (VIETRADE)’s backstopping capacity for
provincial Trade Promotion Organisations, Trade Support Institutions and
Product Associations is strengthened.
2.2. The details of
the Program, the objectives, the expected outputs and the activities, the
budget, the work plan for the inception phase and the logical framework are
stipulated in the Program Document (Annex 1) which forms an integral part of
this Agreement.
ARTICLE
3. ORGANIZATIONAL AND MANAGEMENT STRUCTURES
3.1. The Government of
Vietnam shall participate in the Program through the Ministry of Industry and
Trade (hereinafter referred to as "MolT").
3.2. The Government of
Switzerland shall participate in the Program through the State Secretariat for
Economic Affairs (hereinafter referred to as "SECO").
3.3. The Program will
be executed nationally by the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (VIETRADE) under
the MolT. In accordance with the Hanoi Core Statement on Aid Effectiveness,
VIETRADE will execute the Program in cooperation with the provincial Trade
Promotion Organizations, Trade Support Institutions and exporting SMEs in the
target regions. Also, VIETRADE will be supported by an international advisor,
the International Trade Center and other international experts.
3.4. The Program
Steering Committee (PSC) includes representatives of the following: Ministry of
Planning and Investment, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ministry of Finance,
VIETRADE, the three Regional Trade Support Networks, SECO, and the
International Trade Center (ITC). The PSC meeting will be co-chaired by
VIETRADE and SECO.
The PSC normally meets
once a year and is responsible for guiding the Program strategically. Moreover,
it is in charge of reviewing and approving annual reports on the progress, the
financial situation, the work plans and budgets of the Program.
3.5. The International
Senior Technical Adviser (STA) who had worked for the Project VIE/61/94
“Support to Trade Promotion and Export Development in Vietnam” 2004 - 2009 will
be directly appointed by SECO to continue the STA mandate as described in the
Program document for the first year (12 months) of the Program to support the
PMU and to ensure the smooth implementation as soon as the Program starts.
A successor STA will
be procured by VIETRADE in accordance with the Vietnamese procurement rules
(Article 5.3) during the first nine (9) months of the inception phase. VIETRADE
shall ensure that the successor STA shall be in place and start working for the
Program at least three months before the contract of the appointed STA is
terminated to ensure the smooth hand-over in the first year of implementation.
ARTICLE
4. CONTRIBUTIONS
4.1. The Government of
Vietnam commits to make an in-kind contribution to the Program equivalent to an
amount of USD 570’570 (five hundred and seventy thousand five hundred and
seventy USD) to cover for office space and equipment, meeting and training
rooms and part-time salaries of VIETRADE’s senior and support staff working in
the Program Management Unit (PMU) and a portion of the National Trade Promotion
Program managed by VIETRADE.
4.2. The Swiss
Government shall provide a non-reimbursable grant of up to USD 3’320’000 (three
million three hundred and twenty thousand USD), for financing the
Program. This
contribution is equivalent to around 85 % of the total budget, and shall be
used in accordance with the Program Document (see Annex 1).
A detailed annual
budget will be provided on a yearly basis in accordance with the annual work
plans.
ARTICLE
5. BUDGET AND PROCUREMENT
5.1. The annual budget
of the Program shall be based on its annual work plans which will be fine-tuned
from year to year. The annual budget shall be within the budget frame specified
in the Program Document (see Annex 1).
The annual budgeting
will be in line with the latest version of UN-EU Guidelines for financing of
local costs in development cooperation in Vietnam, taking into account the
current cost level.
5.2. The funds will be
released on a half-yearly basis subject to the approval by the PSC of the
detailed annual work plan and the corresponding annual budget as well as
satisfactory Program progress.
5.3. The Program is
executed nationally in compliance with the Hanoi Core Statement on Aid
Effectiveness, and hence applies the Vietnamese procurement rules.
ARTICLE
6. ACCOUNTING AND AUDITING
6.1. The Swiss
contribution shall be transferred in half-yearly instalments from SECO to
VIETRADE. For this purpose,
VIETRADE will open a separate bank account in American dollars (USD) at a
commercial bank and under the Program title.
6.2. Independent
financial audits of the Program will be conducted on an annual basis in line
with SECO’s financial audit policy. The audit company needs to be qualified and
independent to perform the audits according to international standards of
auditing (ISA). VIETRADE commits to adopt the recommendations as stipulated in
the management letter of the audit company. The Swiss Cooperation Office in
Hanoi will be consulted by VIETRADE for the recruitment of the audit company;
VIETRADE is responsible for mandating and contracting the audit company.
6.3. Financial
responsibilities and management for the Vietnamese and Swiss contributions will
be in line with current Vietnamese regulations on ODA management and with the
Hanoi Core Statement on Aid Effectiveness.
ARTICLE
7. MONITORING, REPORTING AND EVALUATION
7.1. The PSC will give
strategic guidance, review and monitor the Program progress based on the annual
progress report and the annual financial report, and approve the annual work
plan and corresponding annual budget. The decisions by the PSC are made by
consensus.
7.2. The PMU will
prepare and submit to the PSC members the following reports: Annual progress
report, annual financial report, annual work plan and annual budget for the
next operational year, and after Program termination a final report covering
the whole Program period.
All reports shall be
submitted to the PSC ten days in advance of its annual meeting to allow for a
proper meeting preparation. The progress reports shall follow the structure of
the logical framework and inform on progress against the set objectives and
outputs.
7.3. The first
external evaluation will be conducted towards the end of the inception year in
order to review the Program progress and to generate recommendations which will
help to refine the contents of the main phase.
A second external
evaluation can take place at the Program mid-term if deemed useful by the PSC.
An external ex-post
evaluation will be conducted approximately one year after the Program
termination to assess the Program impacts.
SECO will be in charge
of recruiting, and mandating the external evaluators, funding is included in
the Program budget.
ARTICLE
8. OWNERSHIP
8.1. For the duration
of the Program, investments and equipment (hereafter referred to as
“items") provided by the Swiss Government shall remain at the unrestricted
disposal of the Program and shall not be diverted for other purposes without
prior approval of the PSC. If, for any reason whatsoever, items or parts
thereof become useless for the Program, they may be sold if the PSC so agrees.
The utilisation of the proceeds of such sales shall be shown in the financial reports
and agreed upon by the PSC.
8.2. Items financed
under the Swiss contribution shall become the property of the Vietnamese
partners upon entry into the respective inventory at the end of the Program.
8.3. Equipment
purchased in previous phases will be shifted and continued to use in this
Program, At the end of this Program, Program assets will be transferred in line
with the decision taken by the PSC.
ARTICLE
9. PUBLICATION AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
9.1. Results of
collaborative research will be published as mutually agreed. The results of the
co-operative work will be published jointly by the scientists working for the
participating organisations/agencies.
9.2. Intellectual
property rights, in particular copyrights, of material such as information, software
and designs, made available by VIETRADE and the participating
organisations/agencies to be used to carry out activities under this agreement
shall remain with the originating party.
Copyrights of the
information as well as the rights to any other intellectual property that are
developed jointly by the Program and participating organisations/ agencies
under this agreement shall be jointly owned by the parties.
VIETRADE will provide
SECO with copies of any report or paper published as the results of the grant
and will acknowledge the role of SECO in support of the Program in any report
or paper published.
ARTICLE
10. SETTLEMENT OF CONFLICTS
Any difference or
dispute arising out of the interpretation or implementation of this Agreement
shall be settled amicably by consultation between the two Governments.
ARTICLE
11. ANTICORRUPTION CLAUSE
The two Governments
share a common concern in the fight against corruption, which jeopardizes good
governance and the proper use of resources needed for development. They
declare, therefore, their intention of combining their efforts to fight
corruption and, in particular, declare that any offer, gift, payment,
remuneration or benefit of any kind whatsoever, made to whomsoever, directly or
indirectly, with a view to being awarded a mandate or contract within the
framework of this Agreement, or during its execution, will be construed as an
illegal act or corrupt practice. Any act of this kind constitutes sufficient
grounds to justify annulment of the present Agreement, the procurement or
resulting award, or for taking any other corrective measures foreseen by
applicable legislation.
ARTICLE
12. TERMINATION
12.1. This Agreement
may be terminated at any time by either Government by means of written notice
given at least six months in advance.
12.2. In the event of
default by one of the Governments or one of their executing representatives in
the fulfilment of the basic principles or any commitment or obligation under
this Agreement, the other Government may give notice to suspend the application
of the Agreement. Should the reason for the suspension continue beyond six
months the said Government may terminate the Agreement immediately. The two
Governments shall try to settle the cause of suspension through negotiations
and diplomatic means.
12.3. If events
resulting from force majeure (natural disaster, war etc.) prevent the execution
of the Agreement, either Government may terminate the Agreement with effect
from the manner when it becomes impossible to carry it out.
12.4. In case of
premature termination of the present Agreement or at the end of the Program,
any unspent funds provided within the frame of the Program shall be returned to
SECO.
ARTICLE
13. FINAL PROVISIONS
13.1. The present
Agreement shall come into force upon signature and cover the period from June
1, 2013 until May 31, 2017. It shall remain valid until the fulfilment of all
mutual obligations.
13.2. Amendments to
this Agreement shall be effected by means of exchange of letters between the
two Governments.
13.3. The following
annexes form integral part of this Agreement.
Annex
1: Program Document
Done in Hanoi on 31
May, 2013, in two original copies in the English language.
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ON BEHALF OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE SWISS CONFEDERATION
Andrej Motyl
Ambassador
Embassy of Switzerland in Vietnam
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ON BEHALF OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF
VIETNAM
Tran Tuan Anh
Vice Minister
Ministry of Industry and Trade
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