Since the introduction in 1986 of Doi Moi program, a Vietnamese form of
Perestroika, which was designed partly to reduce the role of state bureaucracy
in the system, major economic reforms have been carried out in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV). However, while Vietnam's economic reforms
have generated considerable interest, its limited political reforms, especially in
the area of public administration, have not been a central concern among
political scientists, historians and researchers. In their efforts to revitalise the
state bureaucracy, reformers in Vietnam now recognise the importance of well
qualified bureaucrats, and they inevitably have to face the old issue of how best
to attract, motivate, train and retain public servants for a better government.
This paper, based on the search through the maze of official documents in
Vietnamese language, describes the SRV's political institutions, provides an
overview of Vietnam's administrative system against the backdrop of the
country's economic and political reforms, highlighting institutional interactions
induced by reform imperatives, discusses recent administrative reforms
emanating from the amended 1992 Constitution, and evaluates the effectiveness
of current administrative reform strategies. Comments will also be made on
. The roles and functions of central agencies in Vietnam
. Policy making processes and paradigms
. The 'emerging' dichotomy between policy and administration
. The 'ministerial department' a la Vietnamienne
. Machinery of government changes
. Human resource management initiatives
. The 'career service' nature of the Vietnamese public service, and,
. Central versus provincial governments.
Vietnamese Public Service is an important question and worthy of investigation
because of the increasingly close bilateral relationship between Australia and
Vietnam. Many Australian investors who have often been annoyed by
unnecessary delays caused by bureaucratic red tape and corruption, are now
keen to learn more about the policy making style of Vietnamese bureaucrats.
Vietnam still displays many deliberate trappings of a country run in a highly
centralist fashion. Its reorganisation strategy of the state's administrative
system will continue to bear the socialist imprints. Dr David Marr of the
Australian National University contends that layer upon layer of bureaucratic
influence, from Chinese Neo-Confucian to French Third Republic to Soviet
Stalinist, can be seen in Vietnam today. This paper argues that Vietnam's
political and cultural legacies will continue to exercise significant influence, as
they have in the past, on its public service's structures, strategies and ethics.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/218985 |
| Date | January 1994 |
| Creators | Hai, Peter Nguyen Van, n/a |
| Publisher | University of Canberra. Administrative Studies |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | ), Copyright Peter Nguyen Van Hai |
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