Arranging villages and residential groups in the second quarter of 2026
The policy of arranging villages and residential groups is being strongly promoted nationwide, not only to streamline the apparatus but also to improve management efficiency at the grassroots level - the place directly associated with people's lives.
At a working session with the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Ethnic Minorities and Religions, and the Government Inspectorate on April 17, Politburo Member, Prime Minister Le Minh Hung requested urgent advice on arranging villages and residential groups nationwide and using a team of non-specialized officials. This is directed by the Government leadership to be completed in the second quarter of 2026.
From the reality of the area, Mr. Tran Van Lam (47 years old, residing in Phu Tho province), Village Head cum Secretary of the Party Cell of a densely populated residential area, said that grassroots officials are closely monitoring these policies.
According to Mr. Lam, the village has nearly 1,000 households, interspersed with residential areas with small production facilities and rented labor, causing population management, security and order, and environmental sanitation to always be under high pressure.
There is a lot of work in the village, from grasping the situation, mediating conflicts, managing temporary residents to coordinating to ensure production safety. The actual workload is much larger than many people imagine" - he shared.
Regarding the arrangement policy, Mr. Lam said that this is a necessary direction if implemented methodically and in accordance with reality. However, what he and many grassroots officials are concerned about is the regime and policies for this team when there are changes.
We only hope that if there is arrangement and adjustment, the accompanying policies must be reasonable, so that those who have been attached to the work at the grassroots level are somewhat recognized" - he said.
From an expert perspective, Master of Public Policy Nguyen Tuan Anh believes that arranging villages and residential groups will help streamline the apparatus, and reducing focal points will help organize work more scientifically and effectively. On the other hand, larger area scale, larger population, and more diverse emerging issues will make the role of village heads and residential group leaders more important than ever.
After arrangement, they no longer only perform the task of transmitting information or organizing movement-oriented meetings, but must truly be the ones who take the lead at the grassroots level, grasp the people, be close to the people and connect with the commune-level government" - he analyzed.
Elevating the role of the team closest to the people
According to him, the biggest change is that the requirements for this position will gradually shift to the nature of "community governance". This requires not only skills in mobilizing the masses, but also the ability to coordinate in handling specific issues such as mediating conflicts, ensuring security and order, managing residence, receiving and reflecting people's recommendations, as well as supporting the implementation of new guidelines and policies.
Arranging villages and residential groups is not simply reducing the number of focal points, but also an opportunity to look back and raise the role of the team closest to the people" - Mr. Tuan Anh emphasized.
However, for this team to be assured in their work, according to experts, policies need to be designed in a substantive direction, not egalitarian.
In fact, in many places, the responsibility of village heads and neighborhood group leaders is very large, but the regime is not commensurate. Therefore, when building new regulations, it is necessary to thoroughly grasp the principle that assigning tasks must be accompanied by conditions to ensure implementation.
Mr. Tuan Anh said that it is necessary to classify them according to the specific characteristics of the area. Populated, complex places with high work pressure need different levels of support compared to small-scale areas with fewer problems arising.
In addition to monthly allowances, it is necessary to consider additional policies such as insurance, skills training, operating expense support, concurrent allowances, reward regimes, as well as a mechanism to record the working process to create motivation for long-term commitment.
Good policies are policies that make people at the grassroots level feel that their efforts are recognized, respected and meaningful. Only then will they truly wholeheartedly focus on their work," he said.
