Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh presides over a conference on the progress of expressway projects in the Mekong Delta region - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
The conference was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha, leaders of ministries and central agencies, Secretaries and Chairmen of localities in the Mekong Delta region, project management boards, and contractors.
Currently, in the Mekong Delta region, the Ministry of Construction and local authorities are implementing 11 expressway projects/component projects with a total length of 434.7 km.
The Ministry of Construction is the managing agency for 5 component projects with a total length of 211.77 km, of which 4 projects are planned for completion by 2025 with a length of 191.17 km (Can Tho - Hau Giang and Hau Giang - Ca Mau, 110.87 km; Cao Lanh - Lo Te, 28.8 km; Lo Te - Rach Soi, 51.5 km); the My An - Cao Lanh project (newly started in July 2025) is planned for completion in 2028 with a length of 26.6 km.
Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha speaks at the conference - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
Local authorities are the managing agencies for 6 component projects with a total length of 216.93 km, of which component project 1 Cao Lanh - An Huu, managed by the People's Committee of Dong Thap province, is planned to be completed in 2025 with a length of 16 km; the remaining 5 projects are planned to be completed in 2026 and fully put into operation in 2027 with a length of 200.93 km.
These five projects have been directed by the Prime Minister to have their timelines shortened, specifically: Component Project 1 Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang, 57 km long, managed by the People's Committee of An Giang province, is to be completed by December 19, 2025; Component Projects 2, 3, and 4 Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang, 132.5 km long, managed by the People's Committee of Can Tho city, and Component Project 2 Cao Lan - An Huu, 11.43 km long, managed by the People's Committee of Dong Thap province, are to be completed by April 30, 2026.
Delegates giving reports - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
The projects have basically completed land clearance, with many projects having 100% of their land cleared. Regarding construction materials, the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha have paid attention, repeatedly inspecting, working with, and directing ministries, sectors, and localities to focus on resolving obstacles and accelerating the licensing process for mines. To date, the needs of the projects have been basically met.
Deputy Minister of Construction Pham Minh Ha reports at the conference - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
According to a report by the Ministry of Construction, localities have licensed the exploitation of 63.31 million cubic meters of sand for embankment projects (compared to a demand of 54.2 million cubic meters), however, the permitted exploitation capacity has not met the progress of project implementation. Regarding stone materials, the total demand for projects is 8.6 million cubic meters, of which 5.5 million cubic meters have been identified as sources.
Local authorities have done a good job in supporting resettlement and improving the lives of the people. Security and social order in the project area have been maintained.
To ensure the completion of the projects, the investors developed detailed plans and decisively directed contractors to mobilize additional machinery, equipment, personnel, and resources, and organize construction work in "3 shifts and 4 teams".
Specifically, the Cao Lanh - Lo Te project has reached 92% of its production value and is expected to be fully completed before December 19, 2025. The Lo Te - Rach Soi project has reached 99% of its production value and is expected to be fully completed by the end of October 2025.
The Can Tho - Ca Mau project achieved 75% of its output value. The Cao Lan - An Huu project achieved 68% for component 1 and 53.4% for component 2. The Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang project achieved 62% for component 1, with components 2, 3, and 4 averaging 45%.
Deputy Minister of Finance Le Tan Can reports at the conference - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
Regarding the My An - Cao Lanh project, which commenced in July 2025, the Ministry of Construction is directing the investor to accelerate the construction progress of the last 4 km of the route to ensure early completion and synchronous connection and operation with component project 1 Cao Lanh - An Huu at the An Binh intersection.
Recently, the Government and the Prime Minister assigned the Ministry of National Defense to invest in the Ca Mau - Dat Mui expressway section and the connecting road to Hon Khoai port. The Government also agreed to assign the Ministry of National Defense to apply urgent measures to implement these projects as quickly as possible; the projects commenced on August 19th, and the Ministry of National Defense is urgently implementing them according to schedule to connect Ca Mau to Dat Mui (forming a national expressway connecting Cao Bang to Dat Mui).
Reports and opinions at the conference also assessed that, in the past period, removing difficulties and obstacles and supporting ministries, sectors, and localities to accelerate the progress of key projects in the Mekong Delta has been extremely necessary and timely.
Despite the achievements, key transportation projects in the South, focusing on the north-south expressway project (Can Tho - Ca Mau), the north-south expressway project (Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang), and several other important projects in the Mekong Delta region, still face some difficulties, shortcomings, and limitations.
Challenges include management difficulties in localities when they are first assigned to manage large-scale projects with complex technical requirements; construction on weak soil; resource constraints, especially regarding the supply of materials for road embankment filling, particularly during the period from late 2024 and early 2025 onwards, where coordination and supply of materials faced many difficulties and insufficient materials for filling were not guaranteed. Some projects still have obstacles in land clearance, especially in some locations where high-voltage power lines have not been relocated…
The sooner highways, airports, and seaports are built, the sooner the Mekong Delta will benefit.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh stated that, along with high-quality human resources, strategic infrastructure is a bottleneck for the Mekong Delta, including transportation infrastructure. - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
In his concluding remarks, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh stated that, along with high-quality human resources, strategic infrastructure, including transportation infrastructure, is a bottleneck for the Mekong Delta. The two areas of human resource training and infrastructure development in the Mekong Delta must lead the way, pave the way, and accelerate with greater speed, boldness, and determination.
Over the years, the Party and State have paid great attention to the Mekong Delta region, with the spirit of "saying what you mean and doing what you commit to; committing to what you do and doing it effectively." We have planned approximately 1,300 km of expressways in the region, and are currently constructing many expressway projects, the Hon Khoai port, upgrading Phu Quoc and Ca Mau airports, etc.; and researching the Tran De port.
According to a report by the Ministry of Finance, the total investment in transportation infrastructure in the Mekong Delta during this term is estimated at nearly 600 trillion VND, the highest among all socio-economic regions.
The Prime Minister requested that efforts be made to complete and exceed the set targets for expressway projects in the Mekong Delta, contributing to exceeding the target of 3,000 km of expressways by 2025. - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
The Prime Minister emphasized the need to strive to complete and exceed the set targets for expressway projects in the Mekong Delta, contributing to surpassing the goal of 3,000 km of expressways by 2025. This is a political task, a command from the heart, a responsibility to the Mekong Delta, and the aspiration of the people for the country's rapid and sustainable development. It is projected that by 2026, the region will have approximately 600 km of expressways.
According to the Prime Minister, thanks to the decisive efforts to overcome difficulties for key transportation projects in recent times, including those in the Mekong Delta region, we have achieved many remarkable results. At this point, it can be affirmed that the capital, mechanisms, and raw materials for these projects are generally sufficient; only localized shortages of raw materials exist in some areas.
Looking ahead, the Prime Minister urged all relevant parties to uphold the spirit of patriotism, the responsibility of Party members, and compassion for the people in order to act decisively, speaking less and doing more.
The Ministry of Construction continues to urge and direct investors and contractors to mobilize sufficient financial resources, human resources, and equipment, organize construction in "3 shifts, 4 teams," and strictly handle contractors who are behind schedule according to contract regulations, ensuring the completion of the main route of the Can Tho - Ca Mau project before December 19, 2025, and the completion of the Cao Lan - Lo Te and Lo Te - Rach Soi projects by October 2025.
The Prime Minister instructed relevant agencies to conduct inspections, audits, and investigations if there are any signs of wrongdoing, to promptly detect and strictly handle violations related to construction materials - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
The Ministry of National Defence has directed relevant units to mobilize personnel and equipment to accelerate investment in the expressway project from Ca Mau city to Dat Mui and the road project to Hon Khoai port. At the same time, it is supporting localities in dredging sand from the sea.
Local Party committees and authorities must pay attention to, lead, direct, encourage, supervise, inspect, and resolve obstacles and difficulties for the projects; review and assign cadres appropriately to the two-tier government model to ensure smooth implementation; and care for the lives and livelihoods of people who give up their land for the projects, ensuring that their new homes are better than their old ones.
The provinces and cities of Can Tho and An Giang are directing the investors and contractors of the Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang project to fulfill their contractual obligations, mobilize resources to accelerate project progress, and assume full responsibility for the progress and quality of the works.
Dong Thap province is resolutely urging and directing the investor and contractors of component project 1 Cao Lan - An Huu to regularly monitor and track subsidence to determine the timing for load removal; proactively coordinating with relevant agencies of localities with quarries (Ho Chi Minh City, An Giang) to prioritize the supply of materials for the project; increasing financial resources, human resources, equipment, and organizing construction in "3 shifts and 4 teams"; and when conditions are suitable for load removal, organizing phased construction of the road foundation to accelerate the project's completion.
An Giang province is accelerating the implementation of investment procedures for the route connecting the Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang expressway to the Tinh Bien border gate and the Khanh Binh border gate.
Directing the removal of difficulties and obstacles, the Prime Minister requested that localities and the Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) definitively resolve land clearance issues related to power projects, with completion required by October.
Regarding construction materials, the National Assembly has issued Resolution No. 206/2025/QH15, and the Government has issued Resolution No. 66.4/2025/NQ-CP to address difficulties in material supply. The Prime Minister directed the localities of Can Tho, An Giang, Dong Thap, and Vinh Long to proactively review, increase capacity, open new mines, and flexibly transfer material sources between projects according to Resolution No. 66.4/NQ-CP, granting direct access to raw material mines to investors, project management boards, and contractors as needed; the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment will provide guidance on mine capacity. Localities should proactively resolve obstacles within their authority, and if beyond their authority, they should report to the Prime Minister.
Local authorities in areas where projects pass through direct relevant departments and agencies to publish material prices and construction price indices in compliance with regulations, ensuring that published prices are consistent with market prices and market supply.
Delegates attending the conference - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
In particular, the Prime Minister directed relevant agencies to conduct inspections, audits, and investigations if there are any signs of wrongdoing, promptly detect and strictly handle violations related to construction materials, preventing market manipulation, hoarding, and price gouging; preventing bottlenecks and shortages of raw materials; preventing corruption and negative practices; and preventing situations where domestically sourced raw materials at lower prices are not exploited or purchased, but instead are bought from foreign sources at higher prices. At the same time, attention should be paid to environmental issues, landslides, and subsidence during the extraction and supply of materials.
The Prime Minister noted that along with accelerating progress, it is necessary to ensure and improve the quality, safety, technical standards, aesthetics, and environmental aspects of the projects; localities should refer to, learn from, and replicate good models and effective practices; and the Ministry of Construction should provide guidance on forced loading to shorten construction time while ensuring quality and technical standards.
The Prime Minister also directed relevant ministries and agencies to carry out several specific tasks to accelerate the progress of projects serving APEC 2027; to quickly restart the Can Tho Oncology Hospital (new) project and urgently purchase two radiotherapy machines for the existing hospital to serve patients; and to implement the program of 1 million hectares of high-quality, low-emission rice in the Mekong Delta…
"The mindset must be clear, the determination must be high, the efforts must be great, the actions must be decisive and effective, work must be focused and targeted, each task must be completed thoroughly, with greater speed and boldness, and with more courage to act and take responsibility to contribute to resolving traffic and infrastructure bottlenecks in the region. The sooner a system of expressways, airports, and seaports is built, the sooner the Mekong Delta will benefit, and the people will enjoy the benefits," the Prime Minister stated.
Source: https://vtv.vn/thu-tuong-nhiem-ky-nay-da-danh-600-nghin-ty-dong-cho-giao-thong-dbscl-10025101919410033.htm
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