Members of the Vietnam Association of Architects have raised their voices urging the National Assembly (NA) to impose tighter controls on construction of provincial administration complexes nationwide to avoid a waste of resources.

The administrative center of Da Nang City.

According to a report announced at a recent conference of the association, 15 administrative centers have been commissioned or are under construction in cities and provinces throughout the country, all costing more than VND1 trillion each. The costliest center is the one in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa at nearly VND5 trillion.

The huge budget for such constructions will make inroads into the State budget and leave a heavier burden on taxpayers, they said.

Many cities and provinces are in a race to pour investments in such expensive centers.

Architect Nguyen Van Tat said building provincial administrative centers has become trendy, so it is time for the NA to limit it.

Le Thi Bich Thuan, deputy head of the Institute for Urban Study and Infrastructure Development, questioned whether it is necessary for large cities such as Hanoi and HCMC to gather all their administrative agencies to one huge place.

She said there must be clear orientations for construction of administrative centers in the coming time in order to prevent them from being developed rampantly, which will waste both land and financial resources.

Architect Doan Minh Khoi said the costs for operating those centers are very high because they consume large volumes of energy. Therefore, an effective architecture solution is needed so as to help reduce their energy consumption.

To Ngoc Lien, head of the construction planning institute of the northern province of Lao Cai, said there remain many flaws in the operations of administrative centers and therefore, cities and provinces should carefully measure the demand for using those centers in short and long terms when mapping out plans for them.

For example, Lao Cai Province’s administrative center could not fulfill the demand for parking and did not provide enough space for agencies to work. After three years of operation, the provincial authorities had to use additional money to expand the center.

Starting operation in September this year, the adminstrative center of Danang City is considered as the country’s most modern center but so far, the building cannot ensure enough fresh air and safety for more than 1,600 people working inside at the same time.