HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) on Wednesday launched its portal https://dvc.mard.gov.vn providing online information on administrative procedures. 

Addressing the ceremony, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Hà Công Tuấn said the launch of the online service was a milestone for the sector in implementing e-governance.

He asked agencies to review administrative procedures under their management and connect with the ministry’s portal in a systematic manner.

The ministry has set the target of offering online registration at the third level for popular services by the end of this year.

The departmennts of plant protection and livestock production were the pioneers in introducing online services, according to MARD.

Hoàng Trung, head of the Plant Protection Department, said handling procedures through online services created transparency and were convenient for examination.

Đỗ Thị Anh Thư, representative of the Sygenta company which provides plant protection products and seeds for farmers, said thanks to the online public service, enterprises could submit documents to the Plant Protection Department with just a few clicks.

Nguyễn Xuân Dương, deputy head of the Department of Livestock Production, said the settling of administrative procedures online saved time and reduced cost.

“Enterprises can save some 50 per cent of expenses thanks to the introduction of the online public service,” he said.

The department has received and settled some 40,000 documents through the online service and national single window since the beginning of 2016, Dương said.

MARD has updated nearly 500 procedures on the portal and connected it with the national single window mechanism since December last year. It also offers nine procedures at the third level and eight at the fourth level.

The ministry has also organised training on how to use the public service software for some 600 enterprises engaged in the field of plant protection and animal husbandry.

Online public services in Việt Nam are classified into four levels, depending on the tasks that can be performed digitally.

The first level comprises public services that provide online access to all information regarding the service, including procedures, required papers, deadlines, fees and service charges.

The second level allows users to download the required forms to be printed and filled in later.

The third level allow applicants to fill and submit forms online, however, they still have to pay fees at the relevant government bodies.

Service payments can be settled online at the fourth level. Transaction results are available either online or by post, upon applicants’ request. —  VNS