Information about province merger is incorrect.

Synchronously implementing the Conclusion of the Politburo and the Resolution of the National Assembly Standing Committee and the Government on the arrangement of administrative units at district and commune levels; drastically implementing the arrangement of the internal apparatus of agencies and units towards streamlining, effective and efficient operations is one of the key tasks of the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2024. Talking to reporters, Minister of Home Affairs Pham Thi Thanh Tra affirmed that "there has been no calculation or proposal on the arrangement or merger of any province or city".

No proposal to merge provinces

- Dear Minister, up to now, how have the provinces and cities reported the plan to rearrange administrative units at district and commune levels to the Ministry? Has the number of communes and districts subject to merger changed compared to the initial calculation?

- This is one of the key tasks of the Ministry of Home Affairs as well as of localities in 2024. As of December 31, 2023, all 56/56 localities with district and commune-level administrative units subject to the 2023-2025 restructuring have sent the Master Plan to the Ministry of Home Affairs for presiding.

Based on the synthesis of opinions from relevant ministries and agencies, the Ministry of Home Affairs has issued 56 documents providing comments on the overall plan of localities. The synthesis from the overall plan of 56 provinces and cities shows that the number of district-level and commune-level administrative units implementing the arrangement in the 2023-2025 period has some changes compared to the original plan.

It is expected that in the period of 2023 - 2025, the whole country will have 33 district-level administrative units and 1,327 commune-level administrative units subject to compulsory rearrangement. However, after synthesizing the overall plan, the total number of district-level administrative units subject to rearrangement is 50. Of which, 11 units are subject to rearrangement, 16 are encouraged units and 23 are adjacent units; 19 units will not be rearranged due to special factors. It is expected that after the rearrangement and merger, the whole country will reduce 14 district-level administrative units.

The total number of commune-level administrative units to be reorganized is 1,243. Of these, 738 units are subject to reorganization, 109 are encouraged units, and 396 are adjacent units; 515 units will not be reorganized due to special factors. It is expected that after the reorganization and merger, 619 commune-level administrative units will be reduced.

Through these figures, it can be seen that the number of district and commune-level administrative units that are encouraged to be rearranged by localities is quite large. There are up to 16 district-level administrative units and 109 commune-level administrative units that are not required to be rearranged but localities have proposed to rearrange them.

Besides, although some administrative units at district and commune levels are subject to rearrangement, after reviewing and evaluating many specific factors regarding culture, history, etc., the locality proposed not to rearrange them.

In general, the number of district- and commune-level administrative units to be reorganized and merged in 2024 has not changed much compared to the original plan. Based on the overall plan (after completion), localities are focusing on developing projects, organizing to collect voters' opinions, and submitting them to the Government through People's Councils at all levels, and then submitting them to the National Assembly Standing Committee for consideration and decision before September 30, 2024.

- Recently, there has been information on social networks about the preparation for the arrangement and merger of some provinces. Can the Minister tell us the truth about this?

- This is an issue that many provinces and cities are concerned about and have raised questions with the Ministry of Home Affairs. However, we affirm that the Ministry of Home Affairs has not calculated or proposed anything about the arrangement or merger of any province or city.

Recently, on social networks, there has been a lot of information posted saying that this province is merging with another province. I affirm that this information is inaccurate and baseless, causing concern among people in some provinces and affecting social psychology.

Some provinces such as Bac Ninh and Thua Thien - Hue are making great efforts to meet the conditions to become centrally-run cities by 2026 - 2030. This is the Party's policy in the spirit of Resolution 06-NQ/TW of the Politburo on planning, construction, management and sustainable development of Vietnamese urban areas to 2030, with a vision to 2045, which is being directed by the Government. Therefore, if any province or city, according to the plan, meets the conditions and standards to become centrally-run cities, the competent authorities will consider and decide.

Developing a professional civil servant team

- So how is the organization of the apparatus within agencies and units carried out, Minister?

- Currently, the arrangement of the organizational structure within ministries, branches (general departments, bureaus, divisions) and provincial-level specialized agencies (departments, branches) has been relatively completed. We will focus on continuing to arrange only a number of public service units of ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and government agencies in 2024.

It is expected that after the reorganization, about 140 public service units of ministries and branches will be reduced; at the same time, the autonomy of public service units will be promoted, striving to have 63% of public service units under ministries and ministerial-level agencies be completely autonomous by 2025.

Following the direction of the Government, the Prime Minister assigned the Ministry of Home Affairs to coordinate with ministries, branches and localities to complete the arrangement and restructuring of the apparatus, including administrative units at district and commune levels as well as public service units of ministries, branches and localities by September 2024. Only then will the apparatus be stable to prepare for the organization of party congresses at all levels in 2025.

- One of the important and regular tasks of the Ministry of Home Affairs is to build and perfect institutions related to organizational structure, cadres, civil servants and public employees. So how will the Ministry carry out this task in 2024?

- We are currently focusing on trying to complete the research and proposal to amend the Law on Cadres and Civil Servants; the Law on Public Employees, as well as the Law on Government Organization and the Law on Local Government by October 2024. Especially the Law on Government Organization and the Law on Local Government to promote decentralization, delegation of power, as well as administrative reform from the central to local levels.

Along with institutional development, we will perfect policies to attract and employ talented people, continue to innovate the civil service and civil servant regime; set out criteria, standards, specific regulations, structures, and appropriate ratios for ministries, branches, and localities to base on to consider promoting civil servant professional titles and research the consideration of upgrading civil servant ranks.

We must evaluate correctly and fairly, and at the same time create motivation for cadres and civil servants to strive. Among them, some strive to become senior experts, and another branch, if capable and qualified, will pay attention to training, fostering, planning, and appointing to leadership positions and titles.

We must streamline like that, not let everyone aim for the goal of having a title or leadership position, but must consider developing the civil service team in a professional direction and building a team of senior experts. The salaries of senior experts will be equivalent to the salaries of Ministers and Deputy Ministers, only then can we encourage the team of experts. We will build a mechanism to hire senior experts, attract and promote talents.

- In 2023, the Ministry of Home Affairs is considered one of the ministries that achieved comprehensive results and had many marks of success. As Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang said at the industry summary conference, the Ministry of Home Affairs was assigned many institutional tasks, very difficult and sensitive tasks, and the results achieved were very encouraging. Can the Minister tell us what the secret to such management is?

- It must be said that, in recent years, our Ministry of Home Affairs has always paid attention to innovating leadership, direction, and management in a focused, drastic, close, and focused manner. In particular, we have focused on advising and organizing the implementation of the Party's major policies in the sector, while solving problems arising from practice to ensure immediate requirements, goals, tasks, and long-term strategies.

Realizing the importance of coordination in implementing the tasks assigned by the Government and the Prime Minister, we always strongly urge ministries, branches and localities to promote work on schedule and achieve efficiency.

Therefore, the coordination between the Ministry of Home Affairs and ministries, branches and localities is maintained regularly; timely exchange and response to recommendations and proposals to create unity and smoothness in the process of organizing the implementation of tasks assigned by competent authorities. In particular, solving inter-sectoral issues has initially brought good results.

And of course, to improve the quality and efficiency of operations, the entire Home Affairs sector must not only have high determination, great efforts and determination in directing and operating, but also need to promote all resources and promptly remove bottlenecks. To do this requires the Ministry's leaders and the team of cadres, civil servants and workers in the Ministry to be united and unanimous; if there is internal disunity, everything will be lost.

With that spirit, in 2024, the entire Home Affairs sector will resolutely implement the Resolution of the 13th National Party Congress and set out the motto of action "Discipline, exemplary, professional, effective" to create positive, stronger, and more effective changes in the fields of state management of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Thank you very much Minister!