Cabinet members discuss medium-term public investment

Participants also worked on a projected plan for medium-term public investment in the next stage before reporting to the competent authorities on its contents.

Leaders of ministries at the meeting suggested that it is necessary to promote the attraction of social resources while continuing to restructure public investment to make it play a leading role, along with mobilising non-state investment, further improving mechanisms and policies on public investment, clearing institutional bottlenecks, and promoting decentralisation associated with implementation capacity and responsibilities.

PM Chinh highly praised the achievements in public investment over the past five years, with thanks to the joint efforts of various agencies nationwide, including the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), with a range of innovations in perfecting the institutions.

Along with orientations in the projected report and comments given at the meeting, PM Chinh suggested that the MPI continue to complete the report by updating it to include the latest data and giving more specific evaluation on the results achieved compared to the goals set out in the Resolution of the 12th National Party Congress in 2016, as well as the resolution from the National Assembly regarding the issue.

The report should clearly define good models in localities, while clearly clarifying the negative results and the causes of the delay in projects’ progress, as well as the lessons to be learned, he stressed, requesting that the set plan for public investment during the 2021-2025 period must adhere to the Resolution of the 13th National Party Congress, the National Assembly's resolution and the Government's action plan on the issue.

He also asked for the promotion of public-private cooperation in mobilising all resources for development, while tackling scattered and prolonged investment, combating negativity, tightening discipline and promoting decentralisation along with tools designed to strengthen supervision, in addition to the timely removal of institutional obstacles, reformation of administrative procedures and supplementation of necessary provisions.

The PM asked the MPI to coordinate with relevant agencies to thoroughly review and continue to reduce the number of unnecessary and ineffective projects in the proposed public investment plan for the next period, emphasising that investment must have a focus on key industries and fields, large and important national projects of inter-regional significance with spillover effects, and creating new development space, while at the same time paying attention to social security projects and taking care of people's lives.

PM Chinh also highlighted a number of views on the development of transport infrastructure – an issue that was mentioned by many at the meeting as it is a big "bottleneck" in the current development. In which, the PM asked to promote the implementation of projects in the form of public-private partnership (PPP) on the principle of harmonising the interests of the State, investors and people as well as sharing risks.