After another year of implementing the Ordinance on Belief and Religion, Government’s Decree 22/2005/ND-CP on Instructions for Implementation of Articles in the Ordinance on Belief and Religion, and the Prime Minister’s Directive 01/2005/CT-TTg on Works for Protestantism, the GCRA would like to give an outlook on major outcomes in the implementation of the State’s laws and policies on religious affairs in the year 2007 as follows:

1. Registration and Recognition of Religious Organizations
Apart from the previously recognised and registered 6 religions and their 16 organizations, the GCRA has granted Registration Certificates for religious practice to 13 religious organizations, including 6 new religions (Four Debts of Gratitude/Tứ ân Hiếu nghĩa, The Pure Land Buddhist Home-Practice Association/Tịnh độ cư sỹ Phật hội, Baha’i, Phật đường Nam tông Minh sư đạo, Minh Lý đạo Tam Tông Miếu, Bửu Sơn Kỳ Hương) and 7 Protestant denominations, namely the United World Mission Church/Hội Truyền giáo Cơ đốc Việt Nam, Vietnam Seventh-Day Adventists Church/Giáo hội Cơ đốc Phục lâm Việt Nam, Vietnam Baptist Church (Southern Grace)/Hội thánh Báp-tít ViệtNam (Ân Điển Nam Phương), Vietnam Baptist Church (Southern)/Hội thánh Báp-tít Việt Nam Nam Phương, Vietnam's Mennonite Church/Hội thánh Mennonite Việt Nam, Vietnam Presbyterian Church/Hội thánh Trưởng lão Việt Nam, Vietnam Christian Fellowship Church/Hội thánh Liên hữu Cơ đốc Việt Nam.
In line with the law, the State of Vietnam has officially recognized 3 organizations among 13 above-mentioned religious organizations: United World Mission Church/Hội Truyền giáo Cơ đốc Việt Nam, Vietnam Baptist Church (Grace Southern)/Hội thánh Báp-tít Việt Nam (Ân Điển Nam Phương) and The Pure Land Buddhist Home-Practice Association/Tịnh độ Cư sỹ Phật hội. Other religious organizations will also be recognized by the State in the near future in compliance with the laws.

2. Implementation of the Prime Minister's Directive 01/2005/CT-TTg on Works for Protestantism
To date, 106 chapters in the Central Highlands have been recognized. Some 1,156 meeting points have been registered and permitted to practice, accounting for 90% of total meeting points of the Southern Vietnam Federal Protestant Church. In practice, 200 meeting points of other Protestant denominations have also been registered. 80 Protestant dignitaries have been either ordained or restored their ranks. 38 ethnic students have enrolled in the Institute of Biblical and Theological Studies. Local authorities in the Central Highlands have granted permission for the construction of worship and prayer places for 20 chapters and land-use right certificate to build churches for 30 others.
In the Northern mountainous provinces, local authorities continue to create favourable conditions for Protestant followers to conduct religious practice at home. At the same time, the local authorities have given instruction to followers on the procedures to register meeting points for conducting religious activities. To date, there are 84 registered meeting points.
In addition, there are nearly 400 registered Protestant meeting points nation-wide belonging to other Protestant organizations and denominations. 

 3. Organisation of Training Courses for State Officials, Religious Followers and Dignitaries
In the last two years, GCRA has conducted activities to introduce the Ordinance on Belief and Religion to 13,000 civil servants at various levels, 3,200 dignitaries and 10,000 followers. The GCRA has also assisted 17 provinces and cities in organizing 70 workshops to disseminate the contents of the Ordinance to 17,000 religious dignitaries and followers, and printed 60,000 copies of the Ordinance, 12,000 copies of legislations on religion, 24,000 copies of questions and answers relating to these legislations, 4,000 copies in the ethnic languages of Banar, Ede, J’rai, Khmer, and 37.000 leaflets. In the Northern mountainous area, in coordination with provincial administrations, the GCRA has organised training courses for about 5,000 civil servants in the communes, villages and hamlets to assist them in giving instructions on registration for religious practice to religious followers and groups in accordance with the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 01/2005/CT-TTg.
 The GCRA in 2007 alone has held 16 training courses on religious affairs for over 3,400 civil servants from central to local levels and organized, in coordination with local authorities, 8 classes on religious laws and policies including those related to Protestantism for nearly 2,000 civil servants in villages and hamlets in provinces of the Northern mountainous area, the Central Highlands and Binh Phuoc. The GCRA has also organized 59 conferences for 15,000 religious followers and dignitaries in 19 provinces and cities including 1,800 participants from Catholic Seminaries, Buddhist Institutes and Protestant Institute of Biblical and Theological Studies.

 4. Training Schools for Religious Dignitaries
In addition to a series of Elementary and Secondary Buddhist Studies Schools in provinces and cities, 4 Buddhist Institutes of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha have been increasingly improved with training quality sharply enhanced. The Buddhist Khmer Theravada Institute has enrolled 68 students in its first course.  As for Catholicism, apart from 6 grand Seminaries and the second branch of Ho Chi Minh city Saint Jesus Seminary in Xuan Loc, Dong Nai province, the second branch of Hanoi inter-diocese Seminary would be opened at Bui Chu Bishopric (Xuan Ngoc commune, Xuan Truong district, Nam Dinh province). The Protestant Institute for Biblical and Theological Studies under Vietnam Federal Protestant Church (Southern) has enrolled students for 3 courses and is now building new training facilities in Ho Chi Minh City. The Executive Board of the Southern Church has organized training courses on religious teachings, ordained and restored the ranks for untrained religious dignitaries of ethnic minorities in Central Highland provinces. The Islamic, Hoa Hao Buddhist and Cao Dai churches have also organised training courses for their followers and dignitaries.
According to 2007 statistics from 40/64 provinces and cities, 4,328 students have graduated from religious training courses and 9,075 others are pursuing their studies.

5. Ordination, Appointment and Secondment of Religious Dignitaries
Religious organizations actively take part in strengthening their organizational structure through conferment, ordination, appointment and secondment of their religious dignitaries in accordance with their charters and regulations and the law. In 2007, according to statistics from 40/64 provinces and cities, 1,075 people have been ordained, 1,847 appointed and 442 seconded.

6. Publication of Religious Books
In 2007, the Religion Publishing House has published 620 books with a total of 1.2 million copies for religious organizations and 180 publications related to religion with 97,500 copies and completed the printing of 30,000 copies of the Bible in the ethnic languages of Banar, Ede and J’rai in order to facilitate religious practice by ethnic groups in the Central Highlands. The Religion Publishing House is also considering the publication of the Bible in H'Mong language.

7. Renovation, Upgrade and Construction of Worship Places
In 2007, the statistics from 40/64 provinces and cities showed that there were 383 newly-built worship places and another 461 upgraded and renovated. To date, approximately 70% of religious establishments have been granted certificates for land-use right.

8. Religious Practice
Religious practices such as rituals and festivals, especially during the important dates like Buddhist Vesak Day, Christmas Day, Easter Day of Catholicism and Protestantism, Dieu Tri Festival of Cao Dai Buddhism, Foundation Anniversary of Hoa Hao Buddhism, Muslim Month of Ramadan, etc. have been solemnly held with the participation of hundred thousands of followers. Some religious organizations have convened their congresses in accordance with their charters and regulations, to name but a few, the 4th Buddhist Congress, 10th Congress of Bishops’ Council, Cao Dai Tay Ninh Congress, Cao Dai Ban Chinh dao Congress and Cao Dai Bach y Congress.

9. External Relations
The GCRA has received and worked with the delegations from the Holy See and the US Committee for International Religious Freedom visiting and studying Vietnam's religious situation and policies on religion. The GCRA often meets with representatives from the Embassies of countries such as the United States of America, European Commission, Australia and New Zealand, etc. to discuss and provide accurate and objective information on religious situation and the implementation of religious policies in Vietnam.
Representatives from various religions have participated in such dialogues as the ASEM Interfaith Dialogue in Nanjing (China), Asian-Pacific Regional Interfaith Dialogue in Waitangi (New Zealand) and ASEAN Conference on Laws and Religion in Hanoi (Vietnam). In November 2007, Vietnam's delegation of religious dignitaries paid a working visit to the US and met with the US Congress, the National Security Council and the State Department to share information on the religious situation, activities of religious organizations and Vietnam's policies on religion.
In 2007, several delegations of religious organizations visited Vietnam such as the Plum Village delegation led by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and his Associates (second trip), delegation of Buddhists, monks and nuns from the World Buddhist Mendicant Church led by Most Venerable Thich Giac Nhien and the delegation of America's Christian and Mission Alliance.