Legal environment and improvement of legal environment to develop multimodal transport activities in Vietnam

Part of the reason affects the quality of freight transport services on the road route.

* Air transport :

Similar to the 2005 Maritime Law, Article 115 of the 2006 Vietnam Civil Aviation Law does not allow foreign airlines to provide domestic transport services except in special cases (natural disaster prevention and humanitarian relief). Therefore, the measure here is Article

115 of the 2006 Civil Aviation Law should be revised in the direction of: shifting from providing 2 rare cases in which foreign airlines are allowed to provide domestic transportation services to stipulating a number of special cases in which foreign airlines are not allowed to participate in domestic transportation for security and environmental protection reasons... This adjustment can help create conditions for foreign airlines to participate in Vietnam's domestic air transport market, increase competition for the market that is dominated by only Vietnam's national airline, and create more opportunities for customers to choose transportation services with good quality and reasonable fares.

* Inland waterway transport and railway transport : no legal adjustment is required.

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In addition to the separate amendments in each source of law, the above sources of law should also increase incentives for private and foreign participation in investing and modernizing infrastructure for the transport sector; for example: allowing investment in the establishment of seaports, river ports, dry ports, airports, airfields, roads, railways, railway stations with modern cargo handling equipment... owned by private individuals and foreign enterprises and collecting fees, thereby contributing to overcoming the situation of weak infrastructure, mainly waiting for investment from the State.

2.1.3. Develop insurance laws specifically for goods transported by Multimodal Transport

Currently, regarding the issue of insurance for goods in Vietnam, there are only insurance laws for goods transported by: sea, road, air, rail, inland waterway, while there is no source of law regulating insurance for goods transported by multimodal transport. Goods transported by multimodal transport are often transported through many stages, transported by many methods, making it difficult for the owner to monitor the transportation process of the goods and feel hesitant when choosing this method of transport, so if there is insurance for multimodal transport goods, it will help the owner feel safer, minimize financial losses for the owner in case the goods are lost, damaged, or lost during transportation, and can also help the owner avoid problems in complaining to the carrier to claim compensation.

The Law on Insurance for Multimodal Transport will create a legal basis for insurance companies that intend to provide this new type of insurance, and at the same time encourage and create peace of mind for customers who want to use multimodal transport services but are hesitant (this also means that the Law will indirectly promote the demand for multimodal transport in Vietnam). Thus, the next legal solution is to issue a law on insurance for goods transported by multimodal transport.

2.1.4. Creating sample documents on Multimodal Transport

Completing the legal environment for multimodal transport activities in Vietnam also requires completing all types of documents and certificates related to multimodal transport. Currently in Vietnam there is no official multimodal transport certificate that is widely used, so having a

The sample documents will help transport businesses and customers to be more convenient in the process of implementing the Multimodal Transport Contract. Based on the most general Multimodal Transport Law and the Insurance Law for goods transported by multimodal transport, the Ministry of Transport and relevant agencies should coordinate with each other to draft the sample Multimodal Transport Bill of Lading and sample insurance documents according to the criteria: the content of the regulations, the division of responsibilities is complete, accurate, easy for both parties to declare, ensuring fairness.

2.1.5. Promote the signing of regional and international agreements to facilitate Vietnamese enterprises when participating in the international multimodal transport market.

In the future, Vietnamese multimodal transport businesses will not only limit themselves to providing domestic services but also expand their service networks and access international transport markets. At that time, Vietnamese businesses may have to face difficulties such as: legal barriers that limit market entry into other countries; complicated inspection and clearance procedures for multimodal transport goods while transiting through many countries... Therefore, to facilitate Vietnamese businesses in providing international multimodal transport services without encountering the above-mentioned obstacles, in addition to the ASEAN Framework Agreement on International Multimodal Transport, the Vietnamese Government should participate in signing bilateral and multilateral Agreements and Treaties on facilitating international multimodal transport activities, removing barriers to market entry for transport businesses, simplifying customs clearance inspection procedures for international multimodal transport goods...

Another issue that needs attention in Vietnam's legal system is: Vietnam is now a member of many international organizations: WTO (World Trade Organization), APEC (Asia Economic Cooperation Forum).

- Pacific), ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)... and has signed many international treaties to integrate more deeply into the world economy; therefore, domestic legal sources in the process of reform, supplementation and amendment must comply with the Commitments, Treaties and International Practices that Vietnam has participated in with the aim of avoiding legal conflicts.

2.2. Solutions to improve the management system, implement policies and laws on Multimodal Transport.

The effectiveness of a multimodal transport system depends not only on a complete policy and legal framework but also on its management and implementation. A policy or a source of law, no matter how good, will be meaningless if it is not disseminated and implemented effectively and for the right purpose. This can be considered a weak point in Vietnam that needs to be focused on improving in the coming time, only then will the legal environment for multimodal transport activities in Vietnam be considered truly complete.

2.2.1. Strengthening the role of the State in creating an equal and transparent business environment for multimodal transport enterprises

Up to now, the State has often played a leading role in the field of providing transportation services, both as a regulator, lawmaker and a business operator of transportation services. This situation is clearly shown in the railway, air and sea transport sectors when most of the companies holding infrastructure and domestic transportation market share are corporations under State management agencies such as: Vietnam Railway Corporation under the Railway Department, Vietnam National Airlines under the Civil Aviation Department, Vietnam Maritime Corporation Vinalines under the Maritime Department... This leads to the elimination of competition.

competition in the transportation service market in general and the multimodal transportation market in particular because state-owned enterprises often receive many incentives in terms of access to capital, access to infrastructure, etc. The solution to the above situation is that the State should gradually withdraw from its role as a direct provider of transportation services, shifting to the role of creating a stable and transparent business environment for service providers of all economic sectors, eliminating negative factors of the market to ensure a healthy competitive environment.

2.2.2. Create interaction between the Government, Ministries, sectors, management agencies and multimodal transport businesses

In the process of developing laws and policies regulating multimodal transport, the Government and the Ministry of Transport must closely coordinate with other relevant ministries and agencies (such as the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance, the Departments of Transport, and the management agencies of each mode of transport, etc.). Such coordination helps the law-making agency to receive many practical and effective opinions and initiatives, viewed from many perspectives; thereby drawing common points to serve the law-making process, ensuring accuracy and consistency with many other current sources of law. Moreover, allowing other agencies to participate in law-making also helps the law-making agency avoid the situation of focusing on making laws alone, thus failing to promptly detect shortcomings and contradictions, and helps disseminate laws to lower-level agencies more easily and quickly. In many cases, lower-level agencies do not effectively enforce the law because they do not clearly understand or misunderstand the purpose of the law, so with this direct coordination method, lower-level agencies can understand the purpose of the law from the beginning.

The Government should establish a Forum, possibly through a website, to create a multi-dimensional information channel between the Government, the Ministry, relevant agencies and businesses operating in the field of multimodal transport. Parties can freely express their opinions, views, ask questions, and clarify questions on the Forum; this is also a place for the Government to provide and create information transparency for all parties. Through such interactions, parties can listen to each other's contributions, proposals, solutions and especially grasp the aspirations or difficulties and concerns of businesses themselves (those directly affected by policies and laws). This Forum will be very meaningful for improving the legal system and applying them effectively in practice.

To properly develop and implement policies and laws on Multimodal Transport, it is required that the agencies responsible for implementing regulations in the field of Multimodal Transport (such as licensing agencies, police and customs...) must have a solid understanding and knowledge of that field. Therefore, another solution by which the Government can improve the legal environment for Multimodal Transport activities is to create conditions for the development of a core knowledge base for those working in the field of Multimodal Transport. This base can include a general understanding of Multimodal Transport, related regulations and practices, a summary of information on the correlation of practical activities in Vietnam and other countries... The above information base can be posted on a separate website or included in the website of the Forum introduced above.

2.2.3. Establishment of a specialized agency for Multimodal Transport

There is a need to promptly establish an independent Multimodal Transport Management Agency under the Ministry of Transport (e.g. the Multimodal Transport Department), which will be responsible for:

- Directly manage and supervise the operations of businesses operating in the field of multimodal transport, then report the situation to the Ministry of Transport.

- Closely cooperate with the Management Authority of single modes of transport to effectively manage the connection between modes, eliminating difficulties and obstacles in connecting the above modes.

Having such a specialized agency for multimodal transport will help manage, inspect, and monitor the operations of multimodal transport businesses, organizations, and individuals in the Vietnamese transport market more closely, promptly grasp the legal difficulties that businesses encounter in their actual operations to submit to the Ministry of Transport for solutions...

2.2.4. Issue detailed and clear documents guiding the implementation of the law.

In addition to promulgating the law, the promulgating agency must issue specific documents and directives to disseminate the purpose and guide the implementation to agencies at all levels and localities, ensuring that both the implementing agency and the enterprises within the scope of the law clearly understand the provisions of the law. Detailed and clear documents and directives help the implementing agencies and units avoid confusion or arbitrarily impose their own ways of doing things and understandings on the law, causing the phenomenon of "each place has its own way". For example: In road transport, to eliminate the situation where traffic police in many localities arbitrarily stop and illegally impose different administrative fines on container trucks carrying goods due to misunderstanding or intentionally misunderstanding the regulations on limiting overloaded and oversized vehicles, and to enhance safety

Regarding road traffic (presented in Chapter II), the Ministry of Transport and the Road Management Agency need to have a document clearly guiding the implementation of the above regulations for localities.

2.2.5. Application of information technology and electronic data interchange system EDI

The last but not least important solution is the widespread application of IT and EDI into the management apparatus, policy and law enforcement, into the operating units in the transport industry and into each enterprise operating in the transport business. Management, administrative and paperwork procedures can be simplified and time-saving through information technology, for example:

- Electronic customs declaration and inspection procedures will help both customs authorities shorten the clearance time for goods while still ensuring accuracy and strictness, reducing the time businesses have to travel many times to customs authorities.

- Licensing activities for enterprises operating in the telecommunications sector can also be more convenient and faster by applying the electronic licensing process.

- At ports, terminals, port authorities, pilots, inter-sectoral inspectors... the EDI electronic data exchange system can be applied with shipping lines and transport enterprises to quickly organize and arrange the receiving, checking, storing or transferring of goods. Particularly at seaports, this application can help reduce the number of documents that cargo ships must present when entering and leaving the seaport.

- Through EDI, management agencies can also exchange information, regulations, and business records to help complete their work faster and easier.

As for Vietnamese multimodal transport enterprises, IT and EDI should be used to monitor and operate the process of transporting goods and exchanging information.

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