Promote responsibility, build Nghe An Provincial Planning to ensure progress and quality

On the morning of April 29, the Provincial People's Committee held a working session with relevant departments, branches, localities and units to listen to reports on the progress of implementing the Nghe An Provincial Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050 and research results on the Provincial Planning.

Comrade Nguyen Duc Trung - Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee chaired the meeting. Also attending were Vice Chairmen of the Provincial People's Committee: Hoang Nghia Hieu, Le Ngoc Hoa. Photo: Pham Bang

SLOW PROGRESS, MANY PROBLEMS

According to the report of the Department of Planning and Investment, the Nghe An Provincial Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, was approved by the Prime Minister in Decision No. 1179/QD-TTg dated August 4, 2020. After that, the Provincial People's Committee approved the budget, established and completed the Nghe An Provincial Planning Council, and issued the Implementation Plan.

The joint venture of the Academy of Policy and Development - Institute of Economics and Sustainable Development - Institute of Transport Strategy and Development - National Institute of Urban and Rural Planning won the bid package No. 1 on planning Nghe An province for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050.

Comrade Nguyen Xuan Duc - Director of the Department of Planning and Investment reported the results of the Provincial Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050. Photo: Pham Bang

Up to now, 21/22 departments and branches and 19/21 localities have sent status assessment reports to the Department of Planning and Investment as requested. Through the preliminary assessment, departments, branches and localities have taken action to implement at their units. Some units have developed plans with specific roadmaps, closely following the outline and with quite complete data and information.

It is expected that from May 2021, the Consulting Unit will organize work with each department, branch, sector and district and city to implement the planning work. Currently, the Department of Planning and Investment has drafted the Provincial Development Orientation Framework for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, and has sent documents to departments, branches, sectors and People's Committees of districts, cities and towns for comments.

Provincial, department, and local leaders listen to the report. Photo: Pham Bang

In the process of implementing the task of building the Provincial Planning, there have been some difficulties and obstacles. Specifically, building the Provincial Planning according to the 2017 Planning Law is a very broad and new content. Sectors and localities have not yet fully understood the methods, ways, contents and level of integration of sectoral planning into the Provincial Planning, so the implementation process is still very confusing..

Many units still lack resources and material resources to develop drafts to assess the current situation, reality and forecast the development of industries, fields, and localities, especially the land, agriculture, forestry, and fishery sectors... Some contents on forecasting the development of industries and fields are beyond the scope of expertise: for example, electricity; land...

At the meeting, McKinsey & Company LLC briefly reported on the results of the research on the Provincial Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050 in the socio-economic section; The consortium of the Academy of Policy and Development - Institute of Economics and Sustainable Development - Institute of Transport Strategy and Development - National Institute of Urban and Rural Planning presented the contents and implementation work.

Comrade Hoang Nghia Hieu - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee spoke at the meeting. Photo: Pham Bang

Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Le Ngoc Hoa proposed to speed up the progress of the Provincial Planning and strive to have it approved by the Prime Minister by June 2022. At the same time, he requested consulting units to update the province's data accurately to develop a suitable plan; in which, the province's development direction in the coming time is to produce technology products and consumer goods from the province's agricultural strengths.

Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Hoang Nghia Hieu requested that sectors and localities proactively develop their own planning to integrate into the Provincial Planning. The consulting unit needs to analyze the province's advantages to choose a development orientation based on focus and key points in the direction of both economic development and environmental protection, adapting to climate change. At the same time, update the province's breakthroughs, remove bottlenecks, and ensure the completion of targets in the Resolution of the 19th Provincial Party Congress.

Comrade Le Ngoc Hoa - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee spoke at the meeting. Photo: Pham Bang

STRIVE TO SUBMIT TO THE PRIME MINISTER FOR APPROVAL BY APRIL 2022

Concluding the meeting, Comrade Nguyen Duc Trung - Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee emphasized that the task of developing the Provincial Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, is a particularly important and central task, included in the Action Program to implement the Resolution of the 19th Provincial Party Congress. From here, the province has a basis to carry out the task of socio-economic development in the next 10 years, with a vision to 2050. The process of implementing this task has achieved some results but the progress is still slow.

Regarding the summary report on the results of the research on the Provincial Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050 on the socio-economic part of McKinsey & Company, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee assessed that, as a consulting unit in planning, the company has made efforts to achieve initial results. This is an important basis for the province to refer to in the process of building the Provincial Planning.

Comrade Nguyen Duc Trung - Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee concluded at the meeting. Photo: Pham Bang

In the report, McKinsey & Company has proposed new approaches, major orientations, proposed rapid growth scenarios, and determined the economic structure of the province. The way McKinsey & Company has posed the problem is also appropriate because with limited resources, it is necessary to select a few key industries to focus on development.

However, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee also said that up to this point, the socio-economic development situation in the province has changed compared to 2018. Therefore, he requested McKinsey & Company to pay attention to updating the socio-economic development data up to 2020, accurately identifying development contents suitable to actual conditions, creating development momentum for the province in the coming time.

In the upcoming Provincial Planning, the head of the Provincial People's Committee believes that infrastructure needs to be one step ahead, especially transport infrastructure. Because Nghe An is the largest province in the country, like a miniature country, but the biggest bottleneck is still infrastructure, including transport infrastructure.

The second planning is also very important, which is land use planning, which is the condition for the province to develop. Nghe An has over 83% of its area being mountainous, the land area sufficient for economic development, especially for industrial and agricultural development is not much.

The third planning is urban planning because this is the development trend. But the important thing is the rate of urbanization and it must be suitable to the conditions of the province.

Leaders of departments, branches and localities attended the meeting. Photo: Pham Bang

The Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee also assessed that the biggest problem is that the progress of building the Provincial Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, is very slow. Many sectors and localities have not really paid attention, invested, or spent time on planning work. Although sharing with sectors and localities because this is a difficult task, with many obstacles, and the first time implementing it, sectors and localities must try to speed up the progress to build the best planning in the province's conditions.

The leader must be responsible and directly involved.

Faced with the above reality, in the coming time, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Duc Trung requested that all heads of sectors and localities must take responsibility and directly participate in the planning work. This is a plan for Nghe An province, so Nghe An people who understand Nghe An must participate. The consulting unit with knowledge and experience only plays a supporting role for the province. Sectors and localities, if necessary, can establish a specialized group to carry out this task.

Regarding the time for implementation and completion of the planning, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee requested to adjust Plan No. 55/KH-UBND dated January 26, 2021 on the plan to implement the planning of Nghe An province for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050 in a reasonable direction, setting the target of implementation within a maximum of 12 more months. That is, by April 2022, the province must submit to the Prime Minister for consideration and approval of the Provincial Planning.

The Planning and Investment Department builds a specific timetable, on a weekly basis. Every month, the Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee will work with key members of the Provincial Planning Council to review the progress. Every quarter, the Council will meet to hear the progress and propose tasks and solutions to complete the plan.

Consulting unit attending the meeting. Photo: Pham Bang

Going into the specific tasks of each sector and locality, comrade Nguyen Duc Trung requested the Department of Planning and Investment to take full responsibility, be the focal point, coordinate with sectors, localities, and consulting units to advise and implement planning tasks, ensuring requirements on quality and progress. Closely coordinate with consulting units to solve problems, promptly handle problems, including the capacity of consultants to ensure the quality of the planning.

Sectors and localities must carry out their tasks according to the assigned schedule. In the immediate future, the report assessing the current situation, current situation and forecasting the development of sectors, fields and localities must be completed immediately by the end of the first week of May 2021 at the latest. Closely coordinate, create all conditions, support consulting units; regularly update and grasp the national sectoral planning.

During the implementation process, the existing and ongoing plans must be updated by the sectors and localities and the consulting units must be asked to coordinate closely to share and achieve common goals. If there are any difficulties, they must be promptly reported for handling.

For the consortium of the Academy of Policy and Development - Institute of Economics and Sustainable Development - Institute of Transport Strategy and Development - National Institute of Urban and Rural Planning, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee requested to proactively develop a plan according to the adjustment of the Provincial Plan. If there are any problems, they should be reported to the Provincial People's Committee for resolution.

The consulting unit needs to arrange experts, competent people, with expertise in each industry and field; proactively update the planning. Immediately after signing the contract, it is necessary to start working immediately, and have monthly meetings with Nghe An province to evaluate the progress of implementation. Relevant agencies promptly arrange funding for industries, localities and units to perform their tasks well.

For McKinsey&Company LLC, it is necessary to coordinate with the Consortium of the Academy of Policy and Development - Institute of Economics and Sustainable Development - Institute of Transport Strategy and Development - National Institute of Urban and Rural Planning to review, update, complete the planning, supplement missing issues based on comments from sectors, update the new situation of the province to have a socio-economic planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050 that has real value as an important input for the Planning of Nghe An province in the coming period.