The three provinces of Tay Ninh, Dong Thap, and Vinh Long share relatively similar starting points in terms of population size, socio-economic conditions, and the need for streamlined administrative apparatus. All three localities have initially streamlined their organizations quickly, ensuring the smooth operation of commune-level public administrative centers and strongly promoting digital transformation. However, bottlenecks in decentralization, delegation of authority, personnel, and implementation capacity at the grassroots level still create a gap between objectives and actual results. The challenges and methods of implementing the two-tiered local government model in these provinces also reveal many similarities.
Reporters from the Vietnam News Agency (TTXVN) have produced three articles titled "Overcoming Challenges in the Operation of Two-Tier Local Government," analyzing the current situation, identifying "institutional bottlenecks," and reflecting the voices of localities and businesses to propose ways to improve the model, helping two-tier local government truly become a driving force in enhancing governance effectiveness and serving the people.
Lesson 1: Identifying the “knots”
The two-level local government model is a historic transformation, implemented synchronously throughout the country. In the new Tay Ninh province (merged from the two old provinces of Tay Ninh and Long An), the provincial apparatus was reorganized to 15 specialized agencies and equivalents, with 96 commune and ward-level administrative units. The new Dong Thap province (merged from the old provinces of Dong Thap and Tien Giang) has 102 commune and ward-level administrative units. Vinh Long province (merged from the three old provinces of Vinh Long, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh ) has 124 commune and ward-level administrative units.
However, after nearly 5 months of official operation (since July 1, 2025), these localities are facing many major "bottlenecks," mainly revolving around human resources, an overloaded workload, and inadequate infrastructure.
Overload and shortage
The biggest challenge facing commune-level authorities in all three provinces of Tay Ninh, Vinh Long, and Dong Thap is the significant increase in workload due to taking on additional tasks from the district level.
In Luong Hoa commune, Tay Ninh province, a new administrative unit was formed on the basis of merging the two old communes of Luong Hoa and Tan Buu, the workload is very large. Mr. Dang Cuu Long, Chairman of the Commune People's Committee, said: Each cadre and civil servant must undertake many tasks at the same time in different fields. These tasks and fields are not uniform in terms of the expertise that civil servants are trained for, so there is great pressure on cadres and civil servants of agencies and units. The workload is so large that many agencies and units have to work continuously, even on holidays, to ensure timely resolution of work.
Along with the increase in workload, the issue of personnel has also become urgent. In Luong Hoa commune, the total number of officials and civil servants temporarily assigned by the province is 62 out of 87 positions, with 25 positions vacant (including 14 vacant positions in the Party sector and 11 vacant positions in the State sector).
Similarly, in Vinh Long province, the Standing Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Ho Thi Hoang Yen, also affirmed: "Personnel in some areas are still insufficient, and the quality is not uniform."
The shortage is not only in quantity but also in professional quality. While most commune-level officials and civil servants in Vinh Long have a university degree or higher, their specializations are often not suitable for their positions, particularly in information technology; planning, construction, architecture, and transportation management; land management, mineral resources, water resources, and environmental management; and healthcare, science and technology, and accounting. This situation is also prevalent in Tay Ninh province, where there is a shortage of experienced personnel in accounting, economics, information technology, justice, land management, and construction.
Mr. Truong Le Minh Thong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of An Binh commune, Vinh Long province, acknowledged: "The transfer of some tasks from the district level to the commune level has also put great pressure on commune officials, as they have to take on many new tasks while also resolving outstanding issues. In the initial stage, some officials were not assigned to positions with the right expertise, making it difficult to handle the work."
Shortcomings in decentralization, physical infrastructure, and digital infrastructure.
Although the operation of commune-level public administrative service centers has been prioritized by the provinces of Tay Ninh, Vinh Long, and Dong Thap, the physical and technological infrastructure still lacks uniformity in many aspects.
In Luong Hoa commune (Tay Ninh province), although the Public Administrative Service Center's headquarters has been renovated, the commune still has to reuse old machinery and equipment transferred from the previous unit. As a result, some computers have weak configurations, are outdated, or are damaged.
In My Yen commune (Tay Ninh province), the Party Secretary, Le Thanh Ut, pointed out the current situation: The commune's People's Committee, Party Committee, political and social organizations, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, the military, and the police are currently utilizing the premises of former communes before the merger, leading to many shortcomings in coordination, management, and operation of local affairs. My Yen commune has requested consideration for the allocation of investment capital to build a commune administrative center.
Vinh Long province also faces similar challenges, such as a lack of and inconsistency in infrastructure, information technology, and equipment. Furthermore, the lack of software synchronization is a major obstacle. In Vinh Long, An Binh commune is experiencing difficulties due to the incompatibility of the software systems between VNPT and the Department of Science and Technology, hindering the processing of documents and affecting its ranking. Mr. Mai Phuoc Nghia, a public administration specialist in An Binh commune, stated that he has to make an effort to learn new procedures and familiarize himself with new software to handle documents related to land, agriculture, and the environment.
In the field of digital transformation, which is expected to be a driving force for the two-tiered local government model, there are still inherent problems. According to Le Quang Khoi, Director of the Department of Science and Technology of Dong Thap province: Many localities lack civil servants with in-depth training in information technology. Security is weak, with some computers using unlicensed software and insecure password storage, posing a potential risk of data leakage.
The two-tiered local government model still faces institutional and policy obstacles that are not yet complete. Mr. Nguyen Hong Thanh, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Tay Ninh province, acknowledged: When implementing the two-tiered local government model, many new difficulties have arisen in practice, and more may arise in the future.
My Yen commune (Tay Ninh province) has a population of nearly 50,000 people and two large industrial zones, but only 23 officers and soldiers, which is insufficient to meet the requirements for ensuring security and order. Mr. Le Thanh Ut, Secretary of the Commune Party Committee, believes that supplementing the commune police force is necessary to ensure a strong organizational structure capable of meeting practical tasks. The commune also requests that the competent authorities promptly consider and issue a salary reform policy for its officers and civil servants.
For the two-tiered local government model to become truly effective and sustainable, urgent requirements include removing bottlenecks in specialized personnel, investing in synchronized infrastructure, and perfecting the decentralization and delegation of power from the central government. (To be continued)
Overcoming Challenges in Local Government at Two Levels - Part 2: Flexibility at the Local Level
Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/go-kho-chinh-quyen-dia-phuong-hai-cap-bai-1-nhan-dien-nhung-nut-that-20251210112658984.htm
![[Video] The craft of making Dong Ho folk paintings has been inscribed by UNESCO on the List of Crafts in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.](https://vphoto.vietnam.vn/thumb/402x226/vietnam/resource/IMAGE/2025/12/10/1765350246533_tranh-dong-ho-734-jpg.webp)
Comment (0)