Refine policies for handling the issue.

Báo Tài nguyên Môi trường•09/01/2024

Handling of projects that are not being implemented or are being implemented slowly.

According to the Land Department ( Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment ), statistics, land inventory, and a review of the implementation of the 2013 Land Law show that many investment projects are still being allocated or leased land by the State but are not putting the land into use, or are slow to put the land into use; the inspection, supervision, and handling of projects that are slow to implement or not putting the land into use at the local level are still not given enough attention, are infrequent, and ineffective; penalties for violations are weak and not sufficiently deterrent; and solutions and measures to handle violations are still ineffective... causing a waste of land resources.

To expedite and direct the handling of projects that fail to utilize land, delay land utilization, and cause land waste, in 2018, the Prime Minister issued Directive 01/CT-TTg dated January 3, 2018, on "Rectifying and strengthening land management and building a land information system"; based on reports from 60/63 provinces and centrally-administered cities: The results showed that 3,424 projects and works with a total area of 151,321.72 hectares of land had been allocated, leased, or had investment approval but were not used or were delayed in being utilized. Of these, the following were classified: Projects and works with a total area of 105,046.70 hectares that had received land allocation or lease decisions; There are 381 projects and works for which land acquisition notices have been issued but not yet implemented, with a total area of 38,501.52 hectares; and 710 projects and works for which investment projects or investment policies have been terminated, with a total area of 7,773.50 hectares.

In 2024, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment will strengthen its guidance, establish inspection teams, review, and resolve difficulties and obstacles related to projects that are slow to put land into use or have not put land into use at all nationwide.

Subsequently, in 2021, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment issued Official Letter No. 7352/BTNMT-TCĐĐ requesting localities to review and report data on delayed projects with unresolved issues. The compiled results showed that across the country, there were more than 1,250 projects that had not put land into use or were delayed in putting land into use (with unresolved issues).

Explaining the reasons for this situation, the Land Department stated that it is due to the weak capacity of investors (insufficient financial capacity and other resources to implement the project); the purpose of investors is to obtain projects to occupy land for speculation, waiting for price increases, and transferring the project (using the excuse of requesting planning adjustments and project modifications multiple times, leading to delays in project implementation). Compliance with land law, investment law, construction law, and other related laws is not complete or timely, and violations still occur; there is a lack of active coordination to resolve obstacles in land clearance. Many projects are still plagued by disputes and lawsuits that have not been definitively resolved.

On the part of local state management agencies, the appraisal, approval, and adjustment of investment projects have not been rigorous, leading to the allocation and leasing of land to investors who lack the capacity to implement the project or who seek projects with the intention of occupying the land for speculation, waiting for price increases, or transferring the project. During the process, adjustments to the planning and progress of investment projects are allowed multiple times (in accordance with the Investment Law, the Construction Law, etc.) to help investors evade and prolong violations related to land use.

In particular, there has been a lack of timely and decisive action in reviewing, inspecting, and handling projects with violations related to delayed land use (many projects were inspected and conclusions issued in 2018 and 2019, but to date, no definitive decision has been made).

Regarding legal policies, the Land Department believes that regulations on investment, land, construction, etc., are still overlapping and inadequate, causing difficulties in implementing investment projects. Regulations on adjusting, extending, and terminating investment projects under the Investment Law, and regulations on handling projects that fail to utilize or are slow to utilize land under the Land Law, still contain points that are not specific, clear, or contradictory, leading to difficulties in handling them.

In addition, the implementation of regulations on planning adjustments, appraisal of construction investment projects, and construction permits in many localities still does not comply with the regulations, giving rise to many complicated procedures, leading to prolonged construction investment time.

完善 policies to address and resolve issues.

To address this situation, the Land Department stated that in the coming period, it will finalize legal policies, focusing on amending and supplementing the provisions of the Land Law on handling projects that do not put land into use or are slow to put land into use, to ensure consistency between the Construction Law, Investment Law, and Land Law.

In addition, a Government Decree should be drafted to provide detailed regulations on handling projects that fail to utilize land, are slow to utilize land, or have their investment terminated, in order to fundamentally resolve the obstacles.

By the beginning of 2022, the whole country had 908 projects and works that had not put land into use or had delayed putting land into use (with unresolved issues), covering an area of 28,155 hectares. Of these, land had been reclaimed and project activities terminated for 172/908 projects, covering an area of 6,922 hectares; land use extensions had been processed for 226/908 projects, covering an area of 1,719 hectares; 106/908 projects, covering an area of 1,206 hectares, were under processing; and 404/908 projects, covering an area of 18,308 hectares, remained unresolved.

The Ministry also stated that in 2024, it will strengthen its guidance, establish inspection teams, review, and resolve difficulties and obstacles related to projects that are slow to put land into use or have not put land into use at all nationwide, in order to free up land resources for socio-economic recovery and development.

Furthermore, direct and urge localities to strengthen inspection, review, and resolution of difficulties and obstacles related to projects that are slow to put land into use or have not put land into use within their localities, especially projects that have been allocated or leased land under the 2003 Land Law but are still behind schedule in land use or have not put the land into use.

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