District 2 will be merged with District 9 and Thủ Đức District to become Thủ Đức City. VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — HCM City is proposing a new urban administration model that aims to streamline the state governance system and ensure people’s rights and obligations.

The new model is expected to help solve major problems faced by HCM City and promote the city’s role in the southern region and the country’s development.   

The city’s population and economic scale and density is the largest in the country, which requires that administrative decisions should be carried out by grassroots-level authorities, residents and enterprises in a timely, precise, and organised manner, as required by the model.

The urban administration model is also expected to help shorten the time to develop plans for socio-economic development.

Speaking at a conference on urban administration in HCM City, Nguyễn Thành Phong, chairman of the city People’s Committee, said the administration project was first proposed in 2007 and amended in 2013.  Legal problems delayed its implementation last year.

The city began abolishing People’s Councils for a number of years ago in an effort to reduce overlapping functions and tasks of state governance and reduce expenditures.

As a result, governance improved, according to Phong. However, the elimination of the councils was stopped in 2016. 

In a rapidly developing urban area like HCM City, People’s Councils in districts and wards create an intermediate level that slows down the working process. And the authority assigned to councils is already limited. Abolishing these People’s Councils helps to streamline administrative procedures.

Phong said that next year HCM City will restart the elimination of these People's Councils. The councils in 19 districts and 259 wards will be abolished around mid-year.

After the conference, the Ministry of Home Affairs will submit a proposal on the new urban administration model to the Government for consideration and will then submit it to the National Assembly for approval at its next meeting, Deputy Minister  Trần Anh Tuấn said, adding that the ministry will issue detailed regulations soon on how to carry out the National Assembly’s Resolution on building a new urban administration model in the city.

Thủ Đức City

In another city project, Thủ Đức City will be developed by merging Districts 2, 9, and Thủ Đức. The new city will have a People’s Council and People’s Committee.

Thủ Đức City will be expected to take the core role to speed up the city’s economy as the southern region’s main economic zone.

After establishment, the new city will contribute nearly 30 per cent of the city’s gross regional domestic product and 7 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product.

Huỳnh Thanh Nhân, head of the Department of Home Affairs, said that Thủ Đức City will cover 211 square kilometres and be home to more than 1 million people.

Thủ Đức City will be developed into eight centres including Thủ Thiêm International Finance Centre, Rạch Chiếc Health and Sport Area, High Technology Centre, Educational Technology Centre, Tam Đa Ecotechnology, Trường Thọ Residential Area, Long Phước University Area and Cát Lái International Port. — VNS