Beyond World Trade Organisation (WTO) Program

Objectives: Beyond WTO (BWTO) aims to strengthen Vietnam's capacity to:

Manage the integration of Vietnam into the global economy and its transition to a socialist market economy
Respond to long-term strategic issues as they arise during the global integration process such as the social and environmental impacts of growth.

In Phase 1, BWTO directly supports Government's Resolution No. 16 regarding the National Action Plan for Integration.

Australian Contribution (Phase 1): A$1.3 million, together with DFID (contributed US$1mil. and WB (in kind).

Duration (Phase 1): Jan 2007 - Mar 2008

Location: Countrywide

Program Component

BWTO was launched in January 2007 with a phased approach for implementation.

The USD2-million Phase I (one year) will support Vietnam to develop an Implementation Plan for Integration and implement some urgent activities associated with being a new member of WTO. These include training, education and targeted public awareness activities. A multi-donor trust fund (MDTF) for pooled donor support will also be established. An initial one-year preparatory phase supports GOV to develop a five-year comprehensive Action Program for implementing the Vietnamese Government's guidelines on post-WTO accession development and advancing its wider economic integration agenda under the Socio-Economic Development Plan 2006-2010 (SEDP). This phase also tests a multi-donor trust fund (MDTF) for pooled donor support for implementation of the action plan.

A second (five-year) phase of Beyond WTO will support implementation of the action plan.

Outcomes

The US$2-million Phase I (one year) will help Vietnam develop an Implementation Plan for Integration, and implement activities associated with a new member of the World Trade Organisation. These include training, education and targeted public awareness activities. The project will also establish a multi-donor trust fund for pooled donor support. The initial one-year preparatory phase supports Vietnam's development of a five-year comprehensive Action Program for implementing guidelines on post-WTO accession development and advancing its wider economic integration agenda under the Socio-Economic Development Plan 2006-2010.

A second, five-year phase, of the program will support implementation of the action plan.

Recent achievements

Up to date, BWTO implemented some key achievements, including:

Developed the Work Plan, Operational Manual and Regulation for Management of the MDTF
Organized 3 national workshops on awareness raising on WTO issues
Support some urgent activities which dealt with WTO commitments of Vietnam in 2007.

Vietnamese Counterparts

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Huy
Vice Chairman
Office of Government
Head of the BWTO Steering Committee

Mr. Phan Chi Thanh
Chief of the Office of BWTO Steering Committee
16 Le Hong Phong
Hanoi,Vietnam
Tel. 08044096
Fax: 08044130
thanhcphan@oog.gov.vn

AusAID contact
Ms. Nguyen Mai Chi
Senior Program Manager, Governance
No. 8 Dao Tan, Ba Dinh, Hanoi
Tel. 84 4 831 7754/5; ext 183
Fax: 84 4 831 7706
mai-chi.nguyen@dfat.gov.au

2008