If the target of downsizing the public workforce by at least 10 percent in 2021, compared to 2015, is obtainable, the number of public employees will reduce by 400,000 people and regular budget spending will slide by 5 percent, equivalent to VND45 trillion (US$1.98 billion) making it easy to build Long Thanh Airport.

A view of the conference (Photo: VGP)

The statement was made by Mr. Pham Minh Chinh who is Politburo member, secretary of the Central Party Committee and head of the Central Organization Commission, at an online conference yesterday.

The National Assembly on November 24 passed a resolution on the feasibility report about land withdrawal, compensation and resettlement for Long Thanh Airport Project by 2021 with the total capital of VND22,938 billion ($1 billion).

Reporting at the online conference, Mr. Chinh introduced Resolution 18 on ongoing reform and streamlining of the political system’s apparatus for efficient operation.

According to Mr. Chinh, after 30 years of Doi moi (Renovation), the political system has showed many problems and limitations besides obtained achievements. Organs inside the system has bulged out and been bulky with operation efficiency failing to meet requirements.

Functions and missions of some Party advisory organs such as organization, inspection, propaganda and education boards are overlapped with those of interior, inspection, information and communications organs of the State.

There are up to 30 ministries and ministry level agencies under the Government despite of reform efforts for the last many years. The number is only 11 in Japan, 15 in Singapore and 20 in China.

Vietnam now has 42 general departments double that in 2011 and 826 departments and agencies under general departments, up 4.7 percent.

There are problems in the organization structure of cadres and civil servants with the huge number of people receiving wages and allowances from the state budget, especially workforce in public service units and non-specialized workers in communes and hamlets. Non-specialized workers are those working for communes or hamlets but they are not public servants or cadres.

The number of people receiving wages and allowances from the state budget has quickly increased, approximating four million people excluding military and police personnel as of March 1, 2017. The number of civil servants and officials in central level agencies is 279,143 people. Province and district levels have 2,080,000 while commune and hamlet levels have 1,266,000 employees.

That has created a heavy burden for the economy, focusing on over two million employees in public service units and those from communes, hamlets and residential groups.

Politburo Resolution 39 issued on April 17, 2015 set a target that public workforce must reduce 70,000 people a year. In fact, the number has not gone down but increased an extra of 96,000 after two years. The ratio of public servants and officials is 43 per 1,000 residents excluding military and police personnel.

The number including police and military personnel is 13 in the Philippines, 16 in India, 17 in Indonesia and 25 in Singapore.

From 2011-2015, regular budget spending accounted for 65 percent of the budget expenditure, up 2.2 times over the previous five years.

Total regular spending has been on the rise in recent years, from VND704 trillion in 2014 to VND777 trillion in 2015, VND837 trillion in 2016 and VND900 trillion in 2017. Of these, spending on humane has been high.

The number of provinces and cities increased from 44 in 1986 to 63 now. For the past ten years, it has reduced one by merging Ha Tay province into Hanoi.

Mr. Chinh said that the merger of the province into the city was seem to be very difficult at first. But it has proved right, successful and efficient after ten years.

The merger of two large province and city like that has been done so why it has been impossible for communes and wards. Ha Tinh province has merged hamlets and mountain villages, Hoa Binh provinces have studied to do so in some communes while some other places have considered district merging.

The merger will reduce the staff of public servants and cadres and budget spending, Mr. Chinh stressed.

SGGP