The city aims to complete the relocation of 20,000 houses by the end of 2030, thereby improving the quality of life of people, improving the environment, preventing flooding and embellishing the urban appearance.
But to turn goals into reality, it is impossible to continue the old way of doing things with the level of support that has revealed too many inadequacies.
According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Construction, the origin of land and the process of use of households living along canals and ditches are very complicated. If according to regulations, there are households that are compensated, but there are also many households that are only supported, not arranged for resettlement.
There are houses with an area of only 22 m2, in some places the lowest is only 16.6 m2. With such a small area, the amount of money people receive support is often not enough to buy commercial houses or social housing.
This is the reason why people do not want to relocate, because leaving the old residence means the risk of not having a stable new place to live.
If the problem of "where to go, where to stay" is not solved for the people, all relocation plans will only stop on paper.
Mobilization and persuasion will become increasingly difficult, the project progress will continue to be prolonged, costs will increase, and the canal environment will still be polluted, and flooding will continue to recur.
Therefore, to have consensus on relocation, we cannot just rely on slogans or administrative determination, but must use strong enough policies.
Many opinions suggest that Ho Chi Minh City needs a breakthrough policy to increase compensation and support for houses along canals. This is a key condition to complete the plan to relocate 20,000 houses in the next 5 years.
The breakthrough is not spending money at all costs, but calculating correctly and fully so that people can buy a minimum resettlement quota or social housing.
In the long term, the additional expenditure for relocation support is not a burden, but a profitable investment for the city.
Clearing 20,000 houses along the canal will restore a ventilated canal, reduce pollution, improve drainage, and contribute to flood prevention.
The renovated canals and ditches will create green space, open traffic routes, reduce traffic jams, and improve land use value and quality of life for the entire area.
More importantly, satisfactory support policies also show a humane approach, urban embellishment goes hand in hand with creating conditions for people to have better and safer accommodation.
If the support level is not increased, the goal of relocating 20,000 houses along the canal by 2030 will be very difficult to achieve.
But if done correctly and fully, the city will not only solve a housing problem, but also open up a new face for the city in the coming decades.
