Brian Jeffrey
On December 1, a national conference was convened in Hanoi by the Politburo and the Secretariat of the Communist Party of Vietnam to discuss the progress made in implementing Resolution 18-NQ/TW from the 12th Party Central Committee in 2017, focusing on reforming and restructuring the political system.
During his opening speech, Le Minh Hung, who is a member of the Politburo and Secretary of the Party Central Committee, highlighted some significant outcomes resulting from the Resolution 18 initiative, which have led to noticeable improvements in public administration and the effectiveness of political entities.
However, he noted that the restructuring efforts lack cohesion and a holistic strategy, particularly in terms of right-sizing the workforce and enhancing the quality of civil service personnel. The political system remains overly complex, with excessive layers and ambiguous authority roles, leading to confusion and duplication in responsibilities. Furthermore, the decentralization and power-sharing between various local authorities is neither harmonized nor effectively managed, which falls short of the expectations for the current developmental stage.
He explained that the overall structure of the political landscape is still incomplete. There is a lack of thorough understanding and commitment among Party bodies and leadership groups, resulting in insufficient resolution and proactive measures.
To align with the demands of a new developmental phase, which is pivotal for national progress, Hung announced that there is a robust political will among the Party Central Committee and the Politburo to undertake a thorough review of Resolution 18 at all levels of the political framework. They emphasize that streamlining and optimizing the political organizational structure is a crucial, revolutionary objective that requires unified understanding and action from the Party and the broader political sphere.
The Politburo advocates for a model where one agency handles multiple functions, ensuring that responsibilities are clearly delineated to eradicate overlaps and fragmentation within administrative units. Institutions that have undergone initial restructuring should also be scrutinized for potential further revisions, and there is a critical need to remove unnecessary middle-tier organizations.
Hung highlighted that administrative reforms should align with the Party’s principles on leadership renewal, concentrating on boosting the Party’s governance capabilities, decentralizing authority to local levels, minimizing redundancy, embracing digital advancements, and enhancing public services through community involvement.
This reform must also focus on improving the qualifications and standards of officials and public workers to equip them for the challenges of this new era.
The officials stressed that the reformed structure must surpass previous frameworks and should be operational without disrupting societal functions or affecting citizens adversely.
The conference, which was connected digitally to local Party branches, involved over 1.3 million Party members and addressed the socio-economic landscape for 2024, discussing strategies to promote economic growth for 2025 while solving existing challenges and bureaucratic obstacles.
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