DECISION

PROMULGATING OF THE REGULATION ON THE ORGANIZATION AND OPERATION OF THE NATIONAL BOARD ON WATER RESOURCE

THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government of September 30, 1992;

Pursuant to Decision No. 67/2000/QD-TTg of June 15, 2000 of the Prime Minister on the setting up of the National Board on Water Resource;

At the proposal of the Chairman of the National Board on Water Resource,

DECIDES:

Article 1.-To promulgate together with this Decision the Regulation on the organization and operation of the National Board on Water Resource.

Article 2.-This Decision takes effect after its signing.

Article 3.-The ministers, the heads of ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government, the presidents of the People’s Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities, the Chairman and members of the National Board on Water Resource shall have to implement this Decision .

REGULATION

ON THE ORGANIZATION AND OPERATION OF THE NATIONAL BOARD ON WATER RESOURCE
(Promulgated together with Decision No. 99/2001/QD-TTg of June 28, 2001 of the Prime Minister)

Chapter I

FUNCTION, TASKS AND POWERS OF THE NATIONAL BOARD ON WATER RESOURCE

Article 1.-The National Board on Water Resource has the task of giving consultancy to and assisting the Government in making important decisions concerning the water resource within the ambit of the latter’s tasks and powers;

1. Consultancy on the national strategy and policies on water resource;

2. Consultancy on examining and approving the planning on the basins of major rivers;

3. Consultancy on the shifting of water among the basins of major rivers;

4. Consultancy on the projects of protecting, exploiting and using the water resource decided by the Government; preventing, fighting and overcoming the aftermath of floods and other damages caused by water;

5. Consultancy on the management, protection, exploitation and use of international water resources and settling disputes arising therefrom;

6. Consultancy on the settlement of disputes concerning water resources among the ministries and branches and between the ministries and branches on one side and the People’s Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities on the other and among the provinces and centrally-run cities.

Article 2.-Basing itself on the tasks prescribed in Article 1 of this Regulation, the National Board on Water Resource shall:

1. Take the initiative in studying and making suggestions or giving to the Government consultancy on major undertakings, policies and projects and important questions in the domain of water resource;

2. Organize discussions and solicit the opinions of experts and scientists on the strategy of national water resource, on major, important and complicated projects under the competence of the Government;

3. Make suggestions on major and important reports and projects on the water resource at the proposals of the ministries, branches and localities or at the request of the Government.

Article 3.-Tasks and powers of the Board members:

1. Tasks and powers of the Chairman of the Board:

- To lead the Board in its activities according to the function and tasks stipulated in Article 1 and Article 2, Chapter 1, of this Regulation;

- To urge and inspect the performance of the tasks by the Board members;

- To decide to replace one or several members of the Board after reaching concensus with the related ministries and branches;

- To decide the contents of the questions brought up for discussion at each meeting of the Board;

- To convene and preside over the meetings of the Board;

2. Tasks and powers of the standing members of the Board:

- To help the Chairman of the Board in leading the common work of the Board;

- To settle the day-to-day work of the Board and the questions assigned or authorized by the Chairman of the Board.

- To convene and preside over the meetings of the Board when authorized by the Chairman of the Board;

- To directly lead the Office of the National Board on Water Resource.

3. Tasks and powers of the regular members:

- To take part in all meetings of the Board and fulfill all tasks assigned by the Board;

- To make suggestions on the questions brought up for discussion at the meetings of the Board or on the documents sent by the Board, and also to make written answers if they cannot attend the meeting of the Board;

- To be entitled to get access to and be supplied with the necessary information and to use means of their unit to perform their tasks.

4. Tasks and powers of the irregular members:

- To take part in meetings of the Board when invited by the Chairman of the Board;

- To contribute their opinions to the questions related to the locality and domain of activity of their agency at the meetings of the Board or to the documents sent by the Board, and also to make written answers when they are not able to attend meetings of the Board;

- To be entitled to get access to the necessary information and use the means of their units to perform their task;

- To have the voting right like the regular members when taking part in meetings of the Board.

Chapter II

WORKING PRINCIPLES AND RELATIONS OF THE BOARD

Article 4.-The working regime of the National Board on Water Resource is to discuss, make suggestions and vote at the meetings of the Board. The Director of the Board Office is the secretary of the Board’s meetings.

Article 5.-An opinion which is approved by the majority of the members or which, though approved by only half of the members but is approved by the Chairman of the Board, is a common recommendation of the Board; the recommendations of a meeting of the Board shall be fully transmitted to the Government with the signatures of the Chairman and Secretary of the meeting of the Board. Other opinions shall also be fully recorded in the minutes of the meeting of the Board, and shall be sent to the Government with the signatures of the Standing Member and the Secretary of the meeting of the Board.

Article 6.-Each year the National Board on Water Resource shall hold two meetings in the second and fourth quarters. In case of necessity and at the request of the Prime Minister or at the request of at least half of the regular members of the Board, the Chairman of the Board shall convene an extraordinary meeting. All meetings of the Board must be attended by at least half of its members.

Article 7.-Depending on the contents of the meeting, the Chairman of the Board may invite representatives of the concerned agencies, localities and scientists. The guests shall not take part in the voting on questions of the Board unless invited as non-regular members of the Board.

Article 8.-In case no meeting is convened, the Chairman of the Board may send documents and observation cards to the members of the Board to collect their opinions. The Director of the office of the National Board on Water Resource shall have to integrate these opinions for submission to the Chairman of the Board and report the synthesized result to all members of the Board.

Article 9.-The National Board on Water Resource is entitled to request the ministries, branches and localities to report the activities related to the water resource to serve the research and consultancy work of the Board.

The ministries, branches and localities have the responsibility to supply necessary information and documents at the request of the National Board on Water Resource.

Article 10.-The funding for the operation of the National Board on Water Resource and its Office shall be incorporated in the annual regular budget of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development according to the plan approved by the competent authority.

Chapter III

FUNCTION AND TASKS OF THE OFFICE OF THE NATIONAL BOARD ON WATER RESOURCE

Article 11.-The National Board on Water Resource has its own Office to assist it in its work based at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The Office of the Board has the following main tasks:

1. To prepare the agenda and contents for meetings of the Board and the workshops decided by the Chairman of the Board;

2. To prepare the contents and documents related to the work of the Board between two meetings and to send these documents to the members of the Board as well as the agenda of each meeting at least 14 days before a regular meeting.

3. To synthesize the written opinions contributed by the members absent from the meetings in order to report to the Board and to notify the absent members of the conclusions of the meetings.

4. To write and send the minutes of the meetings and send the consultancy report of the Board to the Government.

5. To study, survey and draw up the consultancy plan including consultancy on international cooperation in the domain of water resource and the creation of consultancy groups on questions mentioned in Article 1, Chapter 1, of this Regulation.

6. To compile the national water resource dossier and other necessary information tools to assist in the consultancy work of the Board. To regularly update the information and data related to the tasks of the Board.

7. To draw up the working plan and the draft annual expenditures of the Board and submit them to the competent authority for examination and approval.

8. To manage the organization, personnel and properties assigned to it according to the State regulations.

Article 12.-Organization of the Board Office

1. The managerial agency for the water resource under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall the function as the Office of the National Board on Water Resource.

The Office of the National Board on Water Resource has its own seal.

2. The payroll of the Office of the Board is part of the payroll of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and prescribed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

3. The Director of the Water Management and Water Conservancy Projects Department (under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) is also Director of the Office of the Board. The Director of the Board Office is answerable to the Chairman of the Board and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development who is the Standing member of the Board, for all aspects of the Office activities.

4. The Director of the Board Office is assisted by a number of Deputy Directors of Office. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development who is the standing member of the Board shall appoint and dismiss the Deputy Directors of the Office of the Board.

Chapter IV

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 13.-Each year when the need arises to replace their representatives as regular members of the Board, the ministries and branches shall make written proposals to the Chairman of the Board for consideration and decision.

Article 14.-The amendment and supplement to this Regulation shall be discussed by the National Board on Water Resource and reported to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision.