According to the Department of Finance of Can Tho City, after merging with Hau Giang and Soc Trang provinces, the total public investment capital plan for 2025 of the city is more than 29,244 billion VND. However, by the end of June, only more than VND 7,300 billion had been disbursed, reaching more than 26% of the plan assigned by the Prime Minister.
Through review, the city currently has 67 projects with a total investment of 100 billion VND or more, accounting for nearly 74% of the allocated capital plan, with a total capital allocated in 2025 of more than 20,214 billion VND. As of June 30, these projects have only disbursed VND4,356 billion, equivalent to 21.55% of the plan.
Can Tho is assigned to be the managing agency for 3 component projects of the Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang expressway, with a total central budget allocated for the year of VND 7,039 billion. By the end of June, only VND 1,555 billion had been disbursed, reaching 22.1%, lower than the general average of the whole city. It is estimated that about VND 2,700 billion for this expressway is unlikely to be fully disbursed in 2025.
The main reason for the slow disbursement progress, according to the Department of Finance, is due to many problems in site clearance. Along with that, the shortage of construction materials, high prices and weak construction capacity of some contractors also greatly affected the progress. Many bidding packages have had to be canceled and reorganized, prolonging the implementation time.
Mr. Le Minh Cuong - Director of the Can Tho City Construction Investment Project Management Board - said that as of July 4, the unit had disbursed VND 1,507/6,116 billion of the assigned capital plan, reaching 24.64%. Of the 15 projects allocated capital in 2025, there are 5 key projects, most of which are the Upgrade and Expansion of National Highway 91B; Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang Expressway and provincial routes 917, 918 (phase 2), 921.
The National Highway 91B Upgrade and Expansion Project has a total investment of VND 7,237 billion. In 2025, the project is allocated VND 3,235 billion, mainly for compensation, support and resettlement. However, so far only about 441 billion VND has been paid. According to the Can Tho City Land Fund Development Center, the total actual cost for compensation is only about VND 2,371 billion, leading to more than VND 3,100 billion remaining unable to be disbursed, greatly affecting the project progress and the general disbursement situation of the city.
Provincial road projects 917, 918 (phase 2), 921 and Kenh Ngang bridge are all behind schedule due to difficulties in site clearance: disputes, complaints, lack of resettlement funds, unidentified land type or changes in land policies.
In the face of low public investment disbursement, Chairman of Can Tho City People's Committee Mr. Tran Van Lau has requested relevant units to clearly identify the goals of each project, especially those with land clearance problems, proactively coordinate with the Land Fund Development Center and local authorities to handle them thoroughly.
Mr. Lau also proposed to effectively use the remaining capital from the National Highway 91B project, study and establish new projects to prioritize resettlement areas. According to him, to speed up site clearance, there needs to be a first resettlement infrastructure, with enough electricity, water, schools, markets... to ensure new housing for people equal to or better than the old place, convenient for transportation and daily life.
In addition, the Chairman of the City People's Committee requested to review all capital needs, propose transferring capital from slow projects to projects with good disbursement capacity, and promptly report cases that cannot be disbursed to have appropriate handling plans.
The Chairman of the People's Committee of Can Tho City said that from now until the end of the year, there is not much time left, while the volume of capital to be disbursed is still very large. Therefore, units must urgently race every day to ensure the completion of the task of disbursing public investment capital in 2025.
