Reducing thousands of villages and residential groups
On June 19, Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee said that the province has issued a decision approving the overall plan for arranging villages and residential groups in the area, in order to meet the requirements of operating a 2-level local government and streamlining the apparatus.
According to Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee, the whole province currently has 4,351 villages and residential groups. Of which, 4,126 villages and residential groups will be arranged and reorganized; 225 villages and residential groups will not be arranged due to specific factors or have met the standards according to regulations.
According to the plan, after arrangement, Thanh Hoa province will have 1,933 villages and residential groups, a reduction of 2,418 units, equivalent to a reduction of 55.6% compared to the present.
For new villages after arrangement, the scale must have 350 households or more; residential groups have 450 households or more. For special areas such as mountainous areas, border areas, difficult areas, scattered residential areas or located in the planning and resettlement area, the household scale may be lower than the standard.
The arrangement must ensure standards according to regulations, in accordance with management requirements when operating the 2-level local government; and at the same time fully consider historical, cultural, customs, habits, geographical conditions, national defense, security and community cohesion.
Also according to Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee, the arrangement will create larger-scale villages and residential groups, contributing to improving the operational efficiency of the political system at the grassroots level. After the arrangement, the whole province is expected to reduce about 4,400 non-specialized personnel; the budget for villages and residential groups will decrease by about 400 billion VND per year.
Arranging the number of village and residential group officials
According to the plan of Thanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee, the titles, number of non-specialized personnel and other titles in new villages and residential groups are specifically oriented.
For non-specialized positions in villages and residential groups, including: Village Head, Residential Group Leader; Secretary of the Party Cell; Head of the Fatherland Front Work Committee, with a number of no more than 3 people as prescribed in Article 14 of Decree No. 185/2026/ND-CP dated May 26, 2026 of the Government.
For the titles of Team Leader, Deputy Team Leader, and Team Member of the Security and Order Protection Team, the consolidation and rearrangement are carried out according to regulations on forces participating in protecting security and order at the grassroots level; and at the same time suitable for the area and population size of each locality.
In addition, other titles participating in activities in new villages and residential groups include: Deputy Village Head; Deputy Head of residential group; Secretary of the Youth Union; Head of the Women's Union; Head of the Farmers' Union; Head of the Veterans' Union.
For titles such as Elderly People, Encouraging Education... the arrangement and operation are carried out according to the charter of each organization and the guidance of agencies and sectors along the upper level.
Regarding regimes and policies, for the title of non-specialized worker, the state budget shall set aside the allowance fund to pay monthly allowances according to the provisions of Clause 1, Article 15 of Decree No. 185/2026/ND-CP.
For the titles of Team Leader, Deputy Team Leader, and Team Member of the Security and Order Protection Team, the payment shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of law on forces participating in security and order protection at the grassroots level and in accordance with regulations approved by the Provincial People's Council, on the basis of the provincial budget ensuring compliance with local budget balance capacity.
For the titles of people participating in activities in villages and residential groups, regimes and policies are implemented according to current regulations and local budget balancing capacity.
