On March 20, some athletes and coaches at the Nghe An Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center reflected on the delay in paying bonuses according to the commendation decisions issued from the end of 2025.
According to documents obtained by reporters, at the end of 2025, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued 2 decisions to award certificates of merit from the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee to 236 individuals (including 145 people in phase 3 and 91 people in phase 1) and reward achievements at national and international sports tournaments (phase 1 and phase 3 in 2025) with a total amount of more than 7.47 billion VND. However, so far, individuals have not received money.
An athlete at the Nghe An Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center said that he received a reward decision about 3 months ago with tens of millions of VND, but has not been paid yet.
Leaders of the Nghe An Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center confirmed the incident. According to the unit, in 2025, based on the actual achievements of the coaches and athletes, the center has compiled a list of proposals for commendation according to regulations and has been issued a commendation decision by the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee.
However, so far the province has not allocated funds to pay. The Center has repeatedly sent officials to work and coordinate explanations with relevant agencies, but is still waiting," a representative of the center said.
Talking to reporters, leaders of the Department of Home Affairs of Nghe An province confirmed that the reflection of the athletes is correct. The reason was determined to be that the total bonus fund for 2025 exceeded the initial estimate by tens of billions of VND.
According to the Department of Home Affairs, in 2025 there will be many tournaments, many competitions, and many individuals with high achievements. At the same time, according to new regulations, the bonus level for cases awarded Certificates of Merit by the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee has been increased by 1.5 times, causing the total expenditure to increase significantly.
It is known that the reward fund exceeded the estimate by more than 14 billion VND. The Department of Finance has advised the Provincial People's Committee on a handling plan, proposing to allocate more than 14.7 billion VND from the 2026 budget for payment. However, this plan has not yet been approved.
Regarding this issue, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued document No. 1878 dated February 26, 2026. In which, Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Bui Thanh An requested the Department of Home Affairs to fully report on the situation of reward funds spent in 2024, estimates for 2025, amounts spent in 2025 (including this proposal), and at the same time clarify the causes and propose solutions to overcome them, along with a specific roadmap.
In further exchange with reporters, Mr. Bui Thanh An - Standing Vice Chairman of Nghe An Provincial People's Committee - said that when the advisory units submitted the funding plan, they realized that the amount exceeding the estimate was large, so they could not approve it immediately.
The province's point of view is to ensure the payment of commendation money according to the issued decisions. However, due to the large amount exceeding the estimate, it is necessary to report and seek the collective opinion of the Provincial People's Committee. When there is consensus, approval and payment will be carried out according to regulations," Mr. An said.
Currently, athletes and coaches are still waiting for the payment of bonuses, while the reward decisions have been in effect since the end of 2025.
