HÀ NỘI — Land use efficiency in cities in Việt Nam remains low due to delayed projects, unused houses and improper land use planning, according to experts.

Chairman of Việt Nam Construction Association Trần Ngọc Hùng said that on average, every square kilometre of urban land in Việt Nam was used by about 2,100 people, while in other Asian countries, the rate was about 10,000 people per square kilometre.

Delayed projects accompanied by unused land and unused houses caused significant wastage and low land use efficiency, he said.

He added that Việt Nam gave up too much land and investment on housing projects in cities, which hindered the development of new urban areas or satellite cities.

In Hà Nội alone, major central hospitals like Bạch Mai, Việt Đức or Military Hospital 108 have been expanded to meet increased demand. Many State and Government offices are based in the city centre, and big hotels are built on crowded streets.

The move of factories from inner-city districts was expected to make room for public infrastructure like parks, schools or play grounds. However, so-called high profit housing projects have typically been developed on the land where the factories used to be.

“Once new urban areas and satellite cities fail to attract people to live and work, projects there faced risks of being halted or delayed,” Hùng told a meeting on urban land use efficiency held by the association late last month. He cited examples of projects along Thăng Long Boulevard or National Highway 32 in Hà Nội, the urban area to the east of Hải Phòng City.

“Increased land use efficiency in cities is an important factor to develop green and modern cities,” he said.

Đào Trung Chính, vice head of the Land Management Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment said the Government had approved land use plans but such plans were not implemented strictly.

Investors were not interested in projects in old urban areas because of modest available land, high prices, and high population density, he said.

“Việt Nam still needs a better legal framework on urban development control to attract investors,” he said.

Associate Professor and Dr Trần Trọng Hanh, former principal of Hà Nội Architecture University said that in order to increase land use efficiency in urban areas, it was necessary to classify land for urban construction, identify optimal capacity of urban areas, and select land for urban construction.

Hanh suggested that a sustainable immigration policy could pave the way to higher land use efficiency in urban areas.

Land use planning should be in accordance with urban planning, he added. — VNS