Large-scale personnel streamlining
On the afternoon of March 3, the Ministry of Finance held a ceremony to announce Decree 29/2025/ND-CP of the Government regulating the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance. The event was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Chi Dung, Minister of Finance Nguyen Van Thang and leaders of units under the ministry.
According to Minister Nguyen Van Thang, the restructuring of the apparatus aims to implement the streamlining policy according to Resolution 18 of the Central Committee. From March 1, 2025, the Ministry of Finance will officially merge the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), take over part of the tasks of the State Capital Management Committee (SGA) and make Vietnam Social Security a public service unit under the ministry. This restructuring helps the Ministry of Finance have a total of 35 units, of which 7 units are from the General Department model to the Department.
The number of units decreased by 3,600 units, equivalent to 37.7%. The number of units at the ministerial and ministerial levels and agencies under the Government decreased by 3 units, the General Department level decreased by 6 units, the Department - Department level under the Ministry decreased by 116 units, the Department - Department level under the General Department decreased by 336 units, and the Department and Branch level decreased by more than 3,100 units. Notably, the Ministry of Finance will reduce 3,600 units, while the number of heads will be reduced equivalent to the number of units reduced. In addition, the total number of civil servants, public employees and workers in the entire financial sector is expected to decrease by 9,640 people in 2025. In 2026, it is expected to continue to streamline about 10,000 people.
Improving operational efficiency and effectiveness
Minister Nguyen Van Thang said that restructuring not only helps streamline the apparatus but also creates opportunities to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of operations. The Ministry of Finance will review the functions and tasks of each unit to ensure the principle of "one agency does many things, but one thing only has one agency with primary responsibility". At the same time, units need to quickly stabilize the organization and put the apparatus into effective operation.
One of the key tasks of the financial industry in the coming time is to manage the budget, ensuring reasonable revenue and expenditure. The Minister requested units to focus on increasing state budget revenue, preventing tax losses, ensuring a regular expenditure rate of less than 60%, and saving the maximum budget.
In 2025, public investment expenditure is expected to be nearly 1 million billion VND, a record number to date, requiring effective allocation and implementation. The Ministry of Finance will closely monitor the disbursement progress, especially for VND700 trillion of ODA capital, to promote economic growth.
Reforming administrative procedures, promoting digital transformation
The Minister emphasized ensuring budget resources for science, technology and innovation, while developing policies to support businesses through tax, fee and charge reduction measures.
The Ministry of Finance will also advise the Government to effectively use financial leverage, optimize public debt space to develop the bond market and upgrade the stock market.
A noteworthy point is that the Ministry of Finance will focus on building a cryptocurrency exchange, developing two financial centers in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang. At the same time, the ministry will play the role of a unit advising the Government in removing difficulties of backlog projects, in order to unlock resources and promote economic development.
In parallel with the organizational reform process, the minister requested the entire sector to promote administrative procedure reform, in 2025, the procedures will be cut by 30-40% according to the direction of the Prime Minister. The financial industry will focus on digital transformation, building a modern information technology system, especially for the fields of tax, customs, treasury, and statistics. Completing the financial data warehouse and connecting to the national data warehouse is also one of the key tasks in the coming time.
