Conducting a consultation on the proposed merger of Bac Kan and Thai Nguyen provinces.

The People's Committee of Bac Kan province is currently soliciting opinions from voters in 108 communes regarding the plan to merge Bac Kan with Thai Nguyen. One proposed name for the new province is Thai Nguyen, and people can agree, disagree, or express other opinions.

A view of Bac Kan city.

The province will post the voter list from April 11 to 19, and organize the opinion poll from April 17 to 19. The commune-level People's Committees will compile and report the results to the district level before April 20, and the district level to the province before April 21.

Bac Kan province has a natural area of ​​4,859 km2 and a population of over 326,000 people. The province comprises 8 district-level administrative units, with 108 communes, wards, and towns. It borders Cao Bang to the north; Lang Son to the east; Thai Nguyen to the south; and Tuyen Quang to the west. Bac Kan's total budget revenue in 2024 reached approximately 930 billion VND.

Meanwhile, Thai Nguyen, located in the heart of the Northern Midlands and Mountains region, covers an area of ​​over 3,560 km2 and has a population of over 1.3 million people belonging to 8 ethnic groups. The province borders Bac Kan to the north; Vinh Phuc and Tuyen Quang to the west; Lang Son and Bac Giang to the east; and Hanoi to the south. Thai Nguyen has three cities, 6 districts with 178 communes, wards, and towns; its total budget revenue in 2024 exceeded 20,000 billion VND.

The merger of provinces and cities is being carried out at the request of the Central Committee. At the closing session of the 11th Central Committee meeting of the 13th Party Congress on April 12th, the Central Committee agreed to reduce the number of provincial-level administrative units nationwide from 63 to 34, including 28 provinces and 6 centrally-administered cities. Several merger options are being studied, such as Da Nang and Quang Nam; Bac Giang and Bac Ninh; Hai Phong and Hai Duong; Lao Cai and Yen Bai; Quang Ngai and Kon Tum; Ho Chi Minh City and Binh Duong; Ba Ria - Vung Tau, etc.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/xa-hoi/202504/trien-khai-lay-y-kien-ve-phuong-an-sap-nhap-bac-kan-va-thai-nguyen-56c1a01/