Vietnam Deputy PM Urges Agencies to Build National Population Database

Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh has asked a number of state agencies to accelerate building of a national population database which has received the prime minister’s approval for a year. The database will largely contribute to simplifying administrative procedures, citizenship documents, and database relating to population management for the 2013-2020 period (Project 896), Mr. Binh said at a meeting on Aug 16. He urged relating agencies to select contractors who can conduct the project later this month, enabling the government to officially launches the database in September. Mr. Binh said that reviewing citizenship papers and administrative procedures is important to remove unnecessary procedures, largely supporting administrative reforms. Administrative procedures relating to population management remain abudant. State agencies have proposed the government simplify 1,126 out of 1,934 procedures relating to citizen information management. Vietnam, the country of 93 million population, has managed its citizens by several kinds of papers, such as identity card, passport, driving license, and citizen code. But the papers become troublesome when the government lacks of the national population databse to manage. (Thanh Tra – Inspection Aug 17, Vietnam News Agency Aug 17)