Many difficulties and obstacles exist in the disbursement of public investment.

At the regular June 2023 meeting of the Provincial People's Committee, the Director of the Department of Planning and Investment, Pham Hong Quang, stated that the total public investment plan for 2023 assigned to Nghe An by the Prime Minister is 9,033.5 billion VND. As of June 20th, the total public investment plan had disbursed 2,682.695 billion VND, reaching 29.7%; of which, the centrally managed public investment capital had disbursed over 1,352 billion VND, reaching 24.22%.

Although the province's disbursement rate is higher than the national average, it is lower than the same period in 2022 (30.69%). Specifically, some sources have low disbursement rates, such as: foreign capital with only over 40.6 billion VND disbursed, reaching 13.75%; the Socio-Economic Recovery and Development Program with only over 69 billion VND disbursed, reaching 9.24%; and the National Target Program with nearly 226.5 billion VND disbursed, reaching 19.18%.

According to the Director of the Department of Planning and Investment, as of June 20th, the National Target Program budget for 2023 still has over 155 billion VND, and over 53 billion VND for 2022 that has not yet been allocated. Of this, 9 projects from 4 investors have not completed the necessary procedures: Ky Son (4 projects); Tuong Duong (2 projects); Nghia Dan (1 project); and the Department of Culture and Sports (2 projects).

The reasons for the delay in completing the necessary procedures are due to several factors: some projects are large-scale, involve complex topographic and geological surveys with multiple steps, thus taking a long time; some projects require submission to central ministries and agencies for appraisal before approval; and some projects are hampered by planning issues and require adjustments.

Specifically for the provincial-managed public investment plan in 2023, as of June 20th, 28 units had disbursement rates exceeding the provincial average (24.22%). 13 districts, cities, and towns, and 29 project owners had disbursement rates below the provincial average.

Thirteen districts, towns, and cities, including: Tuong Duong (0.09%), Que Phong (2.12%), Thai Hoa Town (4.96%), Vinh City (6.96%), Ky Son (7.56%), Hoang Mai Town (13.74%), Con Cuong (16.12%), Quynh Luu (16.57%), Quy Chau (18.92%), Quy Hop (20.85%), Yen Thanh (22.04%), Hung Nguyen (22.83%), and Nam Dan (23.32%).

In particular, many project owners have not yet disbursed funds, including some units with large capital amounts such as: the Department of Tourism, the Department of Health, the Provincial Military Command, the North Nghe An Economic and Technical Vocational College, Vinh Medical University, Tan Ky Irrigation Company Limited, Viet-Duc College, the Provincial Border Guard Command...

By project, 105 out of 164 projects have disbursed funds below the provincial average, including 69 projects with no disbursement yet, totaling over 1,107 billion VND. The main reasons are land clearance issues; some transitional projects are still undergoing procedures; the complex and lengthy procedures for ODA projects; and incomplete investment procedures.

According to the Director of the Department of Planning and Investment, the reasons for the slow disbursement of public investment are the impact of rising prices of raw materials and fuel; the lengthy procedures for implementing new projects; obstacles in land clearance; and inconsistent and untimely guidance documents.

In addition, some investors have not been proactive in carrying out payment and settlement procedures; the professional capacity of some project managers, supervisory consultants, contractors, etc., is still inadequate and does not meet the requirements; some health projects under the socio-economic recovery and development program are very difficult to implement.

Emphasizing solutions for the future, Director of the Department of Planning and Investment Pham Hong Quang requested that investors focus decisively on resolving difficulties and obstacles related to procedures, bidding, and land clearance to accelerate project progress. For some large-scale projects in Ky Son, if investors determine they cannot meet the requirements, they should report to the Provincial People's Committee for solutions to transfer the project to another investor. The Department will continue to review and advise on adjustments and reallocation of capital plans for projects with slow disbursement.

Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Duc Trung requested that all sectors, units, and localities, especially those with low or no disbursement rates, focus decisively on disbursing public investment capital, the three National Target Programs, and the socio-economic recovery and development program. Furthermore, units must proactively address difficulties and obstacles, and report issues beyond their authority to the Provincial People's Committee and relevant sectors for guidance and support.

"For projects that have not yet completed the procedures for capital allocation, the Department of Planning and Investment will review the implementation capacity of the investors, advise on timely solutions, and if they cannot be implemented, transfer the investor or stop the project," Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Duc Trung emphasized, adding that in July 2023, the Provincial People's Committee will hold a province-wide meeting to promote the disbursement of public investment capital, implement the 3 National Target Programs and the Program for economic and social recovery and development.

At the regular June meeting of the Provincial People's Committee, the Provincial People's Committee agreed to submit to the Provincial People's Council a draft Resolution on adjusting the 2023 public investment plan from the local budget. Accordingly, the Provincial People's Committee proposed adjusting down the plan targets for 6 projects with a capital of VND 74.347 billion and adjusting up the plan targets for 3 projects with a capital of VND 74.347 billion.