Politburo member and Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh has just signed Directive No. 14/CT-TTg dated May 28, 2025 of the Prime Minister on developing a socio-economic development plan and a state budget estimate for 2026.
Among the many contents of Directive 14 there is a very current content that is attracting public attention, which is that the Prime Minister requested to promote the arrangement and effective handling of public assets after the merger and streamlining of the apparatus.
Looking back at the recent streamlining and merger of administrative units, it is easy to see that many localities are still struggling to handle surplus headquarters, public housing no longer in use, vacant or degraded public land.
In some places, the old headquarters are abandoned in the heart of the city, in some places it cannot be sold or kept, and we do not know where to include in the land use planning...
This situation makes resources from public assets, which must be a driving force for development, become a burden, a waste or a risk of loss and negativity.
This issue becomes more urgent when many localities are merging with each other. And at the local level, communes and wards are merged together, no longer at the district or county level.
If after the merger, each locality still has to "hold" dozens of units of assets that are no longer functional, wasteful, but also do not have a clear handling process, and progress to a dilemma, it is difficult to say whether the merger and streamlining of the apparatus has been completed or successful.
The delay and ineffective handling of surplus public assets also leads to the risk of group interests and negativity in converting land use purposes and transferring assets.
Streamlining, as the Prime Minister has repeatedly emphasized, is not only about reorganizing the apparatus and people to work more effectively, but also about reorganizing public assets in an effective and reasonable manner.
To do that, three factors are needed: re-evaluating the entire portfolio of public assets after the merger; having a quick and transparent process to change functions or handle assets; and linking the responsibility of the head with the results of effective use of public assets.
More importantly, public assets are not only "old items" that need to be liquidated, but must be viewed as a resource that needs to be promoted.
There are old headquarters that can be completely renovated into community center, school, and commune-level medical facility. There are public land plots, if re-planned appropriately, that can create public space, trees, or traffic units suitable for urban development or auction...
From this perspective, Directive 14 of the Government with the requirement to promote the arrangement and effective handling of public assets after the merger and streamlining of the apparatus, is not only a reminder and warning, but also a boost for localities to change their thinking: handling public assets must be part of a long-term development strategy to first of all not waste resources and money.
