Ho Chi Minh City redirects $580m to land clearance

Vu Tat Than is among around 200 households affected by the Xuyen Tam Canal renovation project. He helped local authorities persuade residents to hand over land, allowing the area to complete 100 per cent of site clearance on schedule, even in cases involving complex legal issues.

Vu Tat Than, Binh Thanh Ward, Ho Chi Minh City said: "Some people bought their property through handwritten agreements, while others had invalid inheritance declarations. With a strong sense of responsibility, the neighbourhood made commitments and worked to persuade residents, and they agreed. The State is now resolving the relevant policies and compensation payments to ensure satisfactory support for them."

Land-clearance disbursement reached 75 per cent by the end of August.

The city is now shifting 15 trillion VND, or nearly 580 million US dollars, from slow-moving projects to land clearance, taking this year's total to nearly 80 trillion VND, or 3.1 billion US dollars, close to half of the city’s public investment capital.

Since July 1, Ho Chi Minh City has also reinstated the K coefficient, used to adjust land prices when calculating compensation.

Phan Tan Dat, Deputy Director, Construction Investment Project Management Board, Binh Thanh Ward People’s Committee, Ho Chi Minh City said: "The city’s position in adjusting the K coefficient is that the interests of residents must still be protected under current compensation policies, with implementation carried out in the way most beneficial to people affected by the project."

Departments and local authorities must reach 70 per cent disbursement by the end of the third quarter, with local leaders held responsible for speeding up land handovers.