"Maintaining too many provinces makes the administrative apparatus cumbersome and wastes the budget"

The whole country is truly entering a great revolution with the determination to continue to reorganize the political system, focusing on the direction of eliminating the intermediate administrative level (district level), merging a number of provincial administrative units and building a plan to reorganize the commune level in accordance with the new organizational model.

The roadmap and specific steps for this major policy have been mentioned by the Politburo and the Secretariat in Conclusions No. 126, 127 and 128.

The Government has also agreed to submit to competent authorities a plan that after the rearrangement, the number of provincial-level administrative units will be reduced by about 50% and the number of grassroots-level administrative units will be reduced by about 60-70% compared to present.

In the Government's proposal, about 1/3 of the district's tasks are transferred to the province, and 2/3 are transferred to the commune.

Dr. Nguyen Si Dung, former Deputy Head of the National Assembly Office, acknowledged that the policy of merging provinces this time is aimed at streamlining the apparatus, reducing intermediate levels, improving the effectiveness of State management and optimizing development resources.

"Maintaining too many provinces makes the administrative apparatus cumbersome and costly to the budget, while many provinces are small in scale, have limited resources, find it difficult to attract large investments and lack regional connectivity," Mr. Dung stated the reality.

Looking back at history, Dr. Nguyen Si Dung said that during the reign of King Minh Mang (1820-1841), the country had 31 provincial-level administrative units, below which were prefectures, districts and communes. This model was suitable for the political context of feudal times, meeting the requirements of managing rural society and maintaining order in a society with a clear hierarchical structure.

But under the French colonial regime, our country was divided into 58 provinces according to three geographical regions (North, Central and South), to optimize management and resource exploitation.

After the country was unified, the State advocated merging provinces to form administrative units of sufficient size, convenient for economic development, infrastructure planning and production organization.

By 1978, the country had only 38 provinces, but during the operation process, many large provinces encountered difficulties in administrative management, socio-economic management and public service provision. This reality, according to Mr. Dung, required a more flexible management system that was closer to the people.

Therefore, from the late 1980s to 1990s, the State began to divide many provinces, leading to the formation of the current number of 63 provinces and cities. From that reality, Mr. Dung believes that each model of provincial division is temporary.

With the policy of abolishing district level and merging provinces this time, Dr. Nguyen Si Dung also pointed out many challenges, first of all, it is the psychological barrier when a part of cadres, civil servants and people are afraid of change.

For the staff, according to Mr. Dung, the merger could affect their job positions, promotion opportunities, and even lead to staff cuts, which could make many people feel anxious. As for the people, the change in administrative boundaries could somewhat affect their living habits as well as the handling of administrative procedures.

The next challenge when arranging local administrative units, Mr. Dung pointed out is the issue related to organizational structure and personnel arrangement.

Besides, there are resource challenges in adjusting administrative infrastructure, synchronizing data systems, changing seals and documents, and reorganizing public services.

Without a proper financial plan, the transition could cause waste or reduce the efficiency of local government operations in the early stages after the merger, according to Mr. Dung.

Regarding the issue of the rights of localities after the merger, Mr. Dung said that there should be reasonable policies to avoid imbalance in socio-economic development between regions in the new province, and also to avoid concerns that small provinces will be "inferior" to large provinces.

After the province's merger, Dr. Nguyen Si Dung emphasized the need to pay attention to adjusting the socio-economic development plan to suit the new administrative scale. "If not done well, there may be a lack of synchronization and conflicts in development, affecting economic growth and investment attraction," said Mr. Dung.

According to Dr. Nguyen Si Dung, the abolition of district level and the merger of provinces and communes with a clear roadmap, along with appropriate policies and a strict monitoring mechanism, will create consensus throughout society.

In Conclusion No. 127, the Politburo requested that with the policy of merging provincial-level administrative units, in addition to the basis of population size and area, it is necessary to carefully study the national master plan, regional planning, local planning, socio-economic development strategy, and sectoral development. This is to meet the development requirements of each locality and the development orientation of the new period.

National Assembly Delegate Pham Van Hoa (Dong Thap) said that merging provinces is an important policy that has been carefully and scientifically calculated and considered from many perspectives to ensure that the new provinces after the merger can develop sustainably.

Currently, the country has 6 socio-economic regions, including: Northern midland and mountainous region, Red River Delta region, North Central and Central coastal region, Central Highlands region, Southeast region and Mekong Delta region.

Mr. Hoa said that it is possible to consider merging provinces located in the same socio-economic region due to their connections and similarities in economic and cultural development orientation as well as geographical factors and historical traditions.

"If these provinces are merged together, there will be many advantages in development, promoting advantages and creating a new, larger development space," delegate Hoa stated his opinion.

Regarding the criteria for merging provinces, Mr. Hoa said that they have been stipulated in resolutions of the National Assembly Standing Committee, but in addition to the basic factors of population size and area, it is necessary to comprehensively consider other factors such as geographical conditions, historical traditions, culture, customs and regional identity...

Sharing the same view, Dr. Pham Trong Nghia, Member of the Committee for Culture and Society, said that in addition to the criteria of natural location, population and area, when merging provinces, it is necessary to carefully calculate specific factors such as history, culture, tradition and beliefs...

In particular, to create momentum for regional development, the merged provinces need to complement each other economically.

With the 6 existing socio-economic regions of the country, Mr. Nghia suggested that when merging provinces, it is possible to set criteria that the merged provinces must be in the same socio-economic region.

According to him, the arrangement and adjustment of provincial administrative units is a big issue, which must be carefully considered based on many clear criteria and conditions.

The goal after merging the provinces, according to delegate Pham Trong Nghia, is to help localities optimize economic development resources without losing the unique cultural identity of each place.

Besides, merging provinces must both help streamline the administrative apparatus and ensure smooth, effective public services without causing difficulties for the people.

In terms of infrastructure, it is necessary to ensure that the merger of provinces does not cause difficulties in moving and connecting between regions.

Following the revolution of streamlining the political system, the direction of eliminating intermediate administrative levels and merging a number of provinces as requested by the Politburo, according to Dr. Pham Trong Nghia, is a breakthrough, also a strategic step in the period when the whole country is entering a new era.

Sharing the same view with Dr. Nguyen Si Dung, delegate Pham Trong Nghia said that the abolition of district level and the merger of provinces not only aims to reduce the number of administrative units but more importantly, aims to improve State management capacity, optimize resources, and create a larger space for socio-economic development.

Vice Chairman of the Committee for Culture and Society Ta Van Ha also commented that this is a correct policy, consistent with development trends and practical requirements. "It can be said that this is a revolution in the history of the country's development," Mr. Ha shared.

Also at the National Assembly 7 years ago, delegate Ta Van Ha was the one who proposed that the Government should consult on merging provinces and cities to both streamline the apparatus and create more space for development. At that time, he recognized that this could not be done in a day or because it was both complicated and sensitive, but the time had come when people's tax money could not bear it when regular expenditures still accounted for 60% of the total state budget expenditures.

Looking at the current context, Mr. Ha commented that we have all the other conditions in terms of infrastructure, technology application or administrative reform to implement this major policy.

In order for the new administrative apparatus after the merger to operate effectively, Dr. Pham Trong Nghia said that first of all, it is necessary to clearly define the authority of the provincial and communal levels when the district level is abolished, in which it is clearly determined which functions and tasks of the district level will be transferred to the province, and which tasks will be assigned to the commune.

At the first meeting of the Steering Committee for the implementation of the arrangement and reorganization of administrative units at all levels and the construction of a two-level local government organization model on March 13, Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh (Head of the Steering Committee) said that in the project submitted by the Government, about 1/3 of the district's tasks were transferred to the province, and 2/3 were transferred to the commune - to the grassroots level.

After the Politburo decides on the policy, it will begin to collect opinions from all party organizations, ministries, branches, and localities.

Increasing investment at the commune level is also an important issue to consider when abolishing the district level. Mr. Nghia said that when abolishing the district level, the provincial and commune levels will have to take on more tasks, so it is necessary to increase investment in budget, human resources and facilities for these two levels.

In particular, it is necessary to improve the qualifications of commune-level cadres to meet new requirements, while reducing dependence on intermediate levels.

In addition, the delegate suggested that it is necessary to ensure the consistency of the political system and review all legal documents related to the district level for timely amendment.

Assessing the Government's plan to reduce the number of provinces and cities by about 50% as appropriate, Mr. Ha noted that the merger, in addition to meeting the criteria on area and population, must ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of State management of local authorities at all levels; promote potential and advantages to promote socio-economic development of each locality in particular and of the country in general.

In particular, according to him, it is also important to ensure requirements on national defense - security, order and social safety; preserve and promote historical and cultural elements of the locality and create favorable conditions for the people.

The issue of naming provinces and cities and choosing administrative and political centers, therefore, according to the delegate, must also consider the above factors very carefully.

Although he believes that the commune level will be stronger after the merger, Mr. Ha also believes that the pressure will be greater. This is a challenge as well as an opportunity to reorganize the administrative management system more effectively.

Therefore, the Vice Chairman of the Committee for Culture and Society suggested that it is necessary to clarify the functions and tasks of the grassroots level, along with increasing resources and human resources for the commune level, to avoid overload in handling work at the grassroots level.

Emphasizing the need for a reasonable remuneration policy for grassroots officials, Mr. Ha pointed out the fact that grassroots officials currently receive low remuneration, while their responsibilities and workload are increasing. Without a suitable remuneration policy, it will be very difficult to attract and retain capable people to work at the commune level.

At the meeting of the Government Party Committee Standing Committee on March 11, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized the requirement in the arrangement and reorganization of administrative units at all levels is to strengthen authority and further promote the self-reliance, autonomy and self-reliance of local levels.

Also according to the direction of the head of the Government, the government needs to be closer to the people, more closely to the people, solve work for the people more conveniently; bring more benefits to the people and create consensus among the people.

Based on the analysis of principles and criteria, especially on the planned arrangement, names and administrative-political centers of provincial-level administrative units, the Prime Minister requested that the arrangement of administrative units, in addition to the criteria on natural area and population size, should consider criteria on history, tradition, culture, ethnicity, geographical conditions, level of socio-economic development, infrastructure, etc.

In particular, the naming of provincial-level administrative units must be inheritable, and the selection of administrative-political centers must consider historical, geographical, infrastructure connectivity, development space, defense, security and integration factors.

In Conclusion No. 127 on implementing research and proposing to continue to reorganize the political system, the Politburo and the Secretariat requested to complete the Project to merge a number of provincial-level administrative units, not organize at the district level, continue to merge commune-level administrative units before March 27 and submit to the Party Central Committee before April 7.

Content: Hoai Thu

Design: Tuan Huy

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Source: https://dantri.com.vn/xa-hoi/duy-tri-qua-nhieu-tinh-khien-bo-may-hanh-chinh-cong-kenh-ton-ngan-sach-20250317204331665.htm