Merging provinces and abolishing district levels is in line with world progress.

According to Professor Tran Ngoc Duong, merging one province with another does not pose any constitutional problem; eliminating the district level and leaving only the provincial and communal levels is also reasonable and in line with world progress.

Talking to VietNamNet about the recent conclusion of the Politburo requesting the Government Party Committee to study the orientation of "merging some provinces and abolishing the district level", Prof. Dr. Tran Ngoc Duong, member of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, former Deputy Head of the National Assembly Office expressed his strong support for this policy.

According to Professor Tran Ngoc Duong, merging one province with another does not pose any constitutional problem. Because the Constitution does not strictly stipulate that "Vietnam has 63 provinces and centrally-run cities". Article 110 of the 2013 Constitution stipulates: "The administrative units of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam are divided as follows: The country is divided into provinces and centrally-run cities".

Prof. Dr. Tran Ngoc Duong, member of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, former Deputy Head of the National Assembly Office. Photo: Minh Dat

Professor Tran Ngoc Duong also expressed his agreement with the removal of the district level and the remaining only provincial and commune levels.

"This is a policy that is very suitable for the government organization of countries around the world. Specifically, they focus on building a strong government at both ends (provincial and communal levels). That is a strong province and a strong grassroots (commune, ward). The intermediate government in the middle is sent by the provincial government to a certain area or region belonging to a few communes and wards to represent the provincial government in holding the government in that area or base. This is also a progressive and modern government model today," Mr. Duong analyzed.

Gather together to create more space for growth

Currently, Vietnam has 63 provinces and cities, so when researching the merger of some provinces, what direction should be followed to be appropriate?

I think the Politburo, the Secretariat, and the Party Central Committee have also done research and there may not be 63 provinces and cities anymore. According to the research direction, some provinces and cities will be merged to create strengths for the region and better regional connectivity. However, it is not yet possible to say how many provinces and cities will be merged, but they will certainly be gathered.

And it may be even smaller than it is now to create regions with interconnected strengths. For example, creating regions with sea, forest, and plains - some coastal provinces can be merged with some coastal provinces to create maritime strengths, forming a large region with strengths.

I think that the Politburo and the Central Committee have done research but will have to do it step by step.

Currently, the merger of administrative units is based on many criteria, mainly based on population and area. So, in your opinion, when studying the merger of some provinces, should we consider other criteria to ensure that it is suitable for reality and avoid the situation of equal and mechanical merger?

I think that when studying the merger of some provinces, there must be specific criteria to create consensus as well as strong development momentum. If there are no criteria and just merge according to subjective wishes, it will not work and may even create "uneven" areas with unreasonable development.

In fact, the recent separation of administrative units into too small ones has led to conflicts, even competition, and the elimination of each other's development. Therefore, the merger of some provinces will be an advantage to overcome this situation and create strong momentum and space for development.

There are many advantages to abolishing the district level.

So what are the advantages and disadvantages of abolishing the district level in the current situation, according to you?

To see how beneficial and harmful this is, we need to continue to research, clarify, and deepen it to implement this policy well, because for a long time in local government we have been familiar with the 3-level model (province, district, commune).

But initial thinking shows that if we remove the district level, there will be many advantages.

The first advantage will create a relatively larger space for economic and social development without being limited to a certain district or county. At the same time, it will create a larger environment to attract potential and resources for development. This is a huge advantage in the context of increasingly integrated economic development. At that time, there will be no barriers by the boundaries and territories of districts, wards and wards.

Second, attract larger resources from the whole province to serve a project of a commune or ward.

Third, this is in line with the Party's policy of streamlining to reduce intermediary levels, increase the State budget, and reduce costs for the current district and county apparatus.

In addition, in the current conditions of rapid scientific and technological development, state management from the province to the grassroots level of communes and wards is much more convenient.

However, at first, there may be some obstacles due to insufficient awareness, leading to doubts and worries about whether state management can be implemented, and whether the distance between the upper and lower levels of government is bureaucratic or not.

Therefore, it is necessary to propagate and educate to have a unified and clear awareness.

If the district level is eliminated, a step in decentralization and delegation of power will be eliminated. Then, decentralization and delegation of power will be done directly from the provincial level to the commune and ward levels, helping the management environment to be more open and convenient.

Previously, to implement any issue, we had to go through the district and then down to the commune and ward, but now it will be implemented directly from the province and city down to the commune and ward, which is much more convenient.

So, in your opinion, is this the right time to merge provinces and abolish district levels? Should this be done before or after the 14th Party Congress (January 2026)?

In my opinion, this is the right time to study this, but it must be studied step by step. Especially after the merger and streamlining of the political apparatus at the central and local levels, the merger of provinces and the abolition of district levels must be done systematically and cannot be done on a subjective basis.

Currently, the Party and State are determined to act quickly and strongly to prepare for the new era starting from the 14th Congress. So this can also be done before the 14th Congress.

The issue of streamlining the apparatus, merging provinces, and abolishing district levels is a matter directly related to people and interests, so it is very complicated and requires thorough preparation and great determination.

Because in reality, streamlining the apparatus has been proposed for decades but has not been implemented effectively and thoroughly.

This time, with the great determination of the Party and the State, we did it very methodically, with determination and specific methods, designed the apparatus from top to bottom and required implementation, not just raised the issue and let the lower levels do it as they please.

Source: https://moha.gov.vn/tintuc/Pages/danh-sach-tin-noi-bat.aspx?ItemID=56893