The draft Law has seven chapters with 38 articles stipulating measures to prevent and reduce the negative impacts of alcohol and beer on Vietnamese population’s health as well as other business and production activities. Also, it lays down specific regulations on the traditional alcohol production.

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Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien presenting the Government's propsal on the draft law on prevention of alcohol harm

According to the Government’s proposal on the draft law presented by Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien, alcohol consumption in the country has reached an alarming level. The World Health Organisation estimated that the average Vietnamese person over 15 years old consumed 8.3 litres of pure alcohol equivalent in 2016.

In 2015, as much as 44.2 percent of men drank alcohol at a hazardous level, almost doubling the figure recorded in 2010. Heavy drinkers are more common in ethnic residents and those living in mountainous and rural areas, she added.

Negative influence of alcohol has posed a formidable challenge for the country to realise the sustainable development goals by 2030 it has committed, she said. Besides the harm on health, alcohol and beer are among three major causes of traffic accidents among men aging 15-49. In addition, nearly 30 percent of cases of social disturbance have close connection with alcohol and beer while 70 percent criminal violations among people under 30 are related to alcohol use.

Presenting the assessment on the draft law, Chairwoman of the NA’s Social Affairs Committee Nguyen Thuy Anh said that most of the committee’s members agreed with the name of the law. The committee asked the Government to conduct more detailed evaluation on the consistency between the draft law and related ones as well as its compatibility with Vietnam’s commitments to the World Trade Organisation and other international treaties.

In addition, the committee required the Government to complete a report evaluating the impacts of policies and administrative procedures that arise from the draft law.

Also in the morning session, NA deputies discussed some contents that received mixed opinions on the cultivation law.

Source: VNA