Proposal to remove bottlenecks in counterpart funds for disadvantaged areas

Delegate Ha Sy Dong expressed many concerns when only 100,000 billion VND was balanced while the minimum capital requirement for the 2026-2030 period is 240,000 billion VND. Photo: Quochoi.vn

On the morning of December 5, the National Assembly discussed in the hall the investment policy of the National Target Program (NTPP) on new rural areas, sustainable poverty reduction, and socio -economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas until 2035.

The consolidation of three current national target programs into one comprehensive program is considered an institutional breakthrough, helping to overcome the situation of resource dispersion and budget overlap.

However, the issue of capital structure and allocation capacity received much attention when many delegates expressed concern about the burden of counterpart funding being too heavy on the shoulders of poor provinces, which are the core areas of difficulty.

Speaking at the meeting hall, regarding capital and resource structure, delegate Ha Sy Dong (National Assembly delegation of Quang Tri province) said that many opinions are very concerned when the minimum capital demand for the 2026-2030 period is over 240,000 billion VND, but currently only 100,000 billion VND has been balanced, reaching only about 41.5% of the minimum demand.

Meanwhile, the requirement to mobilize 33% of local budget capital and 28% from businesses and the community is very difficult and unfeasible for poor provinces, where the regular budget still depends on the Central Government.

“It is recommended to redefine the appropriate matching ratio, especially for mountainous provinces and remote areas. Because in some places, even 10% matching is a challenge,” said delegate Ha Sy Dong.

The delegate also said that it is necessary to clearly stipulate the allocation principle: at least 70% of the central budget capital must be prioritized for ethnic minority and mountainous areas, of which at least 40% must be for particularly difficult areas, ensuring investment in the right core poor areas, with the right focus. Delegate Ha Sy Dong also agreed to let the locality review and decide.

Delegate Ho Thi Minh (National Assembly delegation of Quang Tri province) pointed out, "The estimated capital of the program for the 2026-2030 period is 1.23 million billion VND. However, the central government capital is only 8%, the local budget capital is 33% and the capital mobilized from people and businesses is 28%".

Delegates said that for ethnic minority areas, especially the Central and Central Highlands provinces that are receiving subsidies from the Central Government, applying the 33% counterpart fund is very difficult and can easily lead to outstanding debts in basic construction.

The delegate suggested that the National Assembly should review the capital structure and exempt the counterpart funds for poor communes and areas that frequently experience floods and natural disasters such as the Central and Central Highlands regions, so that the resolution is truly feasible and humane.

Source: https://laodong.vn/thoi-su/de-xuat-thao-nut-that-von-doi-ung-cho-vung-kho-khan-1620529.ldo