Vietnam’s disbursement of public investment in the first seven months of 2019 reached VND134.49 trillion (US$5.78 billion), or 31.32% of the target set by the National Assembly, the lowest year-on-year figure in recent years, according to Tran Van Hieu, vice minister of finance.
Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue at the meeting. Source: VGP.
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Hieu attributed such low rates to the lack of readiness from local authorities and government agencies in supervising projects implementation as well cumbersome the administrative procedures for new projects.
Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Tran Vinh Tuyen said the city has disbursed 26% out of the total VND33.17 trillion (US$1.42 billion) for 2019, while that of the ODA source was at 50% of the total VND800 billion (US$34.41 million).
Ngo Van Quy, vice chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee, said Hanoi has disbursed 24.7% of the total estimate so far.
At the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue criticized the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) for delay in reporting the situation to the government, saying slow disbursement of public funds is putting pressure on the government.
As a matter of urgency, Hue stressed weaknesses in investment management of government agencies must be properly addressed to deal with the issue.
Hue requested the MPI to complete allocating the remaining VND35 trillion (US$1.5 billion) in August, while moving funds from delay projects to ones with faster disbursement.
The disbursement rate of provinces/cities in 2019 would serve as basis for calculation of public investment plan for each province/city and government agency in 2020, Hue stated.
