On June 5, Minister of Ethnic and Religious Affairs Nguyen Dinh Khang chaired a meeting at the ministry’s headquarters to review leadership and management activities in May and outline key priorities for June 2026.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Minister Y Vinh Tor, Deputy Minister Nguyen Hai Trung, and leaders of several departments and affiliated units under the Ministry of Ethnic and Religious Affairs.

PSX_20260605_120412.jpg
Minister of Ethnic and Religious Affairs Nguyen Dinh Khang chairs the meeting. Photo: Le Anh Dung

Proactive leadership drives broad-based progress

A major highlight in May was the ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the traditional day of the state agency responsible for ethnic affairs management. The event served not only as an opportunity to reflect on the sector’s development journey but also reaffirmed the strategic role of ethnic policies in strengthening the great national unity bloc.

In foreign affairs, Minister Nguyen Dinh Khang joined the high-level delegation led by General Secretary and President To Lam on a state visit to India and Sri Lanka.

The Ministry of Ethnic and Religious Affairs also coordinated with the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment to implement a cooperation program for sustainable development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas during the 2026-2030 period.

One of the ministry’s key priorities has been digital transformation and the development of specialized databases. To date, the religious affairs database has completed all 21 professional functions and has been successfully integrated with the VNeID electronic identification application and the National Population Database. At the same time, the ministry is accelerating the development of an ethnic affairs database to ensure synchronization and interoperability, with completion targeted within 2026.

The ministry has also advised on the implementation of numerous important decrees and circulars, achieving a 100% completion rate for legal guidance documents and avoiding any backlog in detailed regulatory instructions.

Notably, all administrative procedures under the ministry’s authority have been connected to the online public service environment. The online application rate has exceeded 87%, more than four times higher than the same period last year. The ministry is continuing to draft regulations aimed at reducing both processing time and compliance costs by 50% in the field of beliefs and religion.

The ministry has also proactively guided local authorities in effectively organizing religious and belief-related activities, promptly addressing legitimate needs of religious organizations and individuals, and closely coordinating with relevant agencies on religious personnel management, activities involving foreign elements, and the organization of major religious events.

In addition, the ministry has completed the consolidation of lists of villages and communes in ethnic minority and mountainous areas for the 2026-2030 period, issued multiple guidance documents for the implementation of the National Target Program, and worked closely with ministries and sectors on capital allocation and the resolution of local difficulties.

The ministry is also actively reviewing Resolution No. 24-NQ/TW on ethnic affairs in order to advise on the formulation of a new resolution better aligned with current development requirements. Several other important projects are also under preparation.

PSX_20260605_081453.jpg
Chief of Office Nguyen Cao Thinh reports on leadership and management activities in May and key tasks for June 2026. Photo: Le Anh Dung

PSX_20260605_085607.jpg
Ha Xuan Tung, Director General of the Department of Organization and Personnel, speaks at the meeting. Photo: Le Anh Dung

Removing bottlenecks and improving implementation of national target programs

During discussions at the meeting, participants agreed that despite significant achievements, several shortcomings remain, particularly regarding the pace of administrative reform, digital transformation and public investment disbursement.

Delegates proposed strengthening the accountability of agency heads in implementing administrative reforms and public investment projects, accelerating the application of information technology, improving coordination among units, and regularly inspecting and supporting grassroots authorities to ensure timely implementation of ethnic and religious policies and programs throughout 2026.

In his concluding remarks, Minister Nguyen Dinh Khang acknowledged and highly appreciated the sense of responsibility and efforts demonstrated by departments and affiliated units during the first five months of 2026.

The minister emphasized that alongside achievements, departments and units must candidly recognize existing shortcomings and limitations.

“Once shortcomings have been frankly identified, every leader and every head of unit must develop concrete solutions for leadership and management. Meetings must be organized to thoroughly communicate these requirements to all officials, civil servants, public employees and workers so that these weaknesses can be effectively addressed,” Minister Nguyen Dinh Khang said.

The minister instructed all units to urgently review their entire 2026 work plans and assigned tasks in order to focus implementation efforts, ensure progress and achieve substantive outcomes, while avoiding delays and formalistic approaches.

Regarding the review of Resolution No. 24-NQ/TW on ethnic affairs, the minister directed relevant units to quickly finalize implementation plans for submission to the Government Party Committee. He also called for close alignment with government action programs, Central Committee directives and thematic resolutions to ensure effective execution. At the same time, greater attention should be paid to developing inspection and supervision plans for activities under the National Target Program.

In the field of religious affairs, the minister instructed units to focus on drafting the decree guiding implementation of the amended Law on Beliefs and Religion, ensuring quality and adherence to the government’s timeline. He also stressed the need to continue monitoring ethnic and religious developments nationwide, proactively identifying and addressing emerging issues at an early stage to prevent the emergence of security-related hotspots.

The Digital Transformation Center was tasked with reviewing all assigned responsibilities and requiring affiliated units to formulate detailed digital transformation plans linked directly to their professional functions, ensuring both feasibility and consistency.

Minister Nguyen Dinh Khang also called for continued efforts to streamline administrative procedures by reviewing all procedures under the ministry’s management and reassessing the legal normative documents issued by the ministry in order to promptly amend or supplement provisions that no longer reflect practical realities.

He further urged continued promotion of emulation and competition movements, along with enhanced guidance and training programs aimed at improving workforce capacity.

The minister particularly emphasized the need for stronger coordination among departments and units to ensure smooth information flow and timely, effective handling of tasks, contributing to the successful fulfillment of the sector’s political objectives in 2026.

Hoang Quy