Speaking at the conclusion of the National Conference on Removing Difficulties and Obstacles and Promoting the Development of Social Housing this afternoon (March 6), Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized that the State has issued a number of mechanisms and policies to reduce costs and prices for social housing, but quality, standards, and regulations must be ensured; and infrastructure for transportation, social services, health, culture, education , sports, electricity, water, etc., must be synchronized and convenient.
The Prime Minister assessed that, recently, the construction of social housing has achieved certain results, progress, and changes, but compared to the requirements and expectations, it has not yet been achieved; nationwide, 655 social housing projects have been implemented with a scale of 593,428 units.
However, many localities are lagging behind the implementation schedule outlined in the Project. The disbursement of the 120,000 billion VND preferential credit fund for social housing remains slow and faces difficulties. There are still obstacles and challenges for businesses investing in social housing in accessing land, investment and construction procedures, bidding processes, credit, and preferential policies.
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The Prime Minister gives instructions at the conference on social housing (photo: VGP). |
To achieve the set goals and create positive changes, the Prime Minister directed the ministries, agencies, and localities to implement specific tasks and solutions. Specifically, the Ministry of Construction was tasked with leading the review of existing institutional, process, and procedural obstacles, identifying who would resolve them, determining the timeframe, and setting out results, ensuring clarity on responsibilities, tasks, timelines, and outcomes. Furthermore, the Prime Minister instructed which agencies should amend relevant laws, decrees, and circulars, proposing amendments to the Government and submission to the National Assembly.
Emphasizing the need for preferential policies, the Prime Minister requested that this be submitted in March, or at the latest in April. Local authorities must plan and adjust social housing plans accordingly, completing this by the second quarter at the latest; any obstacles should be addressed through proposals. The Ministry of Construction is to review the standards, regulations, and norms related to social housing (such as height, construction materials, etc.).
Local authorities must develop infrastructure in a coordinated manner to meet requirements, investing in public services if necessary; they can consider awarding contracts for both social housing and infrastructure projects simultaneously, but it is crucial to prevent corruption, malpractice, and waste.
The Prime Minister requested a study on appropriate interest rates; an increase in interest rates is possible but must be done quickly, as prolonged projects waste time, effort, and trust. Each task must be completed thoroughly and properly.
The Prime Minister requested the establishment of a national housing fund (to be completed in March); approval of the list of people eligible to buy, lease-purchase, or rent social housing based on an integrated population database with established standards and criteria; a mechanism to support land clearance at the local level; mobilization of social resources, people, and public-private partnerships; and local budget funds entrusted through the Social Policy Bank… The State Bank of Vietnam will not include social housing loans in the credit "room" of banks.
"The Government Office will take the lead in reviewing and cutting at least 30% of administrative procedures in 2025. Having people in need wait 5 or 10 years for social housing is not very effective," the Prime Minister instructed.
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