Deputy Prime Minister directs localities to be more responsible and determined in implementing national target programs.

On the morning of August 28, the Central Steering Committee for the implementation of the Government's national target programs held an online meeting with localities nationwide to review the implementation of national target programs from 2021 to present and key tasks and solutions in the coming time.

Comrade Tran Luu Quang - Member of the Party Central Committee, Deputy Prime Minister, Head of the Central Steering Committee for National Target Programs chaired the conference. Attending the conference were Comrade Hau A Lenh - Member of the Party Central Committee, Minister, Chairman of the Ethnic Committee, Deputy Head of the Central Steering Committee for National Target Programs; representatives of leaders of ministries, departments and central branches.

Focus on implementing national target programs

According to the report of the Ministry of Planning and Investment, implementing national target programs (new rural construction, socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, sustainable poverty reduction) in the period of 2021 - 2025, ministries, central agencies and localities have actively developed mechanisms and policies to manage, guide implementation, promulgate regulations on principles, criteria, and norms for allocating program capital, mechanisms for integrating and mobilizing capital sources; focusing and being determined in directing, operating, inspecting and supervising; widely informing and propagating on mass media.

The results of resource allocation, mobilization and use to implement target programs and medium-term public investment plans from the central budget for the 2021-2025 period of the 3 national target programs approved by competent authorities are VND 102,050 billion (including: VND 100,000 billion of domestic capital, VND 2,050 billion of foreign capital).

By the end of July 2023, ministries, central agencies and localities had allocated and assigned the 2023 capital investment estimates and plans of the three national target programs to affiliated agencies, units and levels.

Regarding capital disbursement results: Regarding the capital plan for 2021: According to the 2021 state budget settlement report, the total disbursed public funding for national target programs in 2021 is 1,078 billion VND, reaching 88.95% of the plan.

Regarding the capital plan for 2022: According to the report of the Ministry of Finance, by January 31, 2023, the disbursement of capital in 2022 was about VND 14,468,011 billion, reaching 42.49% of the plan (of which: development investment capital was about VND 12,933,106 billion, reaching 54% of the plan; public expenditure was about VND 1,534.35 billion, reaching 7.82%).

Also according to the report of the Ministry of Finance, it is estimated that by August 31, 2023, the disbursement result of long-term development investment capital will be about 6,225,657 billion VND, reaching about 58.47% of the long-term capital plan (calculating the total planned capital for 2022 disbursed in 2022 and in 8 years of 2023 is about 19,158,763 billion VND, reaching 79.82% of the plan for 2022).

At the meeting, delegates discussed difficulties and obstacles in organizing and implementing national target programs and recommended and proposed solutions to effectively carry out key tasks, ensuring the completion of goals and targets set by competent authorities for the National Target Programs for the 2021-2025 period.

In Nghe An, the implementation of national target programs in the province has been promptly directed by the Provincial Party Committee and Provincial People's Committee, creating consistency in leadership and implementation from the provincial to district and commune levels. Up to now, the province has basically completed the issuance of legal documents and documents to implement national target programs according to regulations.

The province has completed the goals and targets according to the plan assigned by the Prime Minister in Decision No. 653/QD-TTg dated May 28, 2022, specifically: the whole province has 309/411 communes meeting the new rural standards (reaching 75.18%), 53 communes meeting the advanced new rural standards (accounting for 17.15% of new rural communes), 7 district-level units completed the tasks/met the new rural standards; the poverty rate in the whole province decreased by 1.39%, the poverty rate in ethnic minority and mountainous areas decreased by 3.63%.

The total development investment capital plan from the central budget for the 2021-2025 period of the 3 national target programs assigned by the Prime Minister to Nghe An province in Decision No. 652/QD-TTg dated May 28, 2022 and Decision No. 147/QD-TTg dated February 23, 2023 is VND 5,344.388 billion. Currently, the People's Council of Nghe An province has allocated VND 4,931.108 billion to implement the 3 national target programs in the 2021-2025 period.

Results of disbursement of annual capital plan: The total development investment capital plan from the central budget in 2022 and 2023 of the 3 national target programs assigned by the Prime Minister is 2,476,294 billion VND. As of August 20, 2023, the cumulative disbursement was 967,205 billion VND, reaching 39.05% of the plan.

Career capital: The total career capital plan for 2022 and 2023 of the 3 assigned national target programs is 1,715,077 billion VND. As of August 20, 2023, the cumulative disbursement was 209,937 billion VND, reaching 12.24% of the plan.

Localities across the country need to be more responsible and determined.

Concluding the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang acknowledged, commended and highly appreciated the results of implementing the three national target programs of localities across the country.

The Deputy Prime Minister assessed that the results of implementing national target programs have changed positively, but there are still limitations, especially some localities have not really paid attention, have not completed assigned tasks; basic projects still follow the old fragmented and small model; procedures are cumbersome.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang clarified 6 main contents of the relevant proposals and recommendations of the localities.

Specifically, the Government needs to have a mechanism that does not require the preparation of annual medium-term public investment plans for small-scale projects and non-complicated technical projects; there needs to be a mechanism for approving projects that only need to be consistent with the investment content of national target programs approved by the Prime Minister.

The Government needs to have a mechanism for regular annual budget expenditures according to each national target program to ensure flexibility and initiative for localities; a mechanism to allow the use of public investment capital from the state budget entrusted through the social policy bank to implement some contents of the national target program; increase decentralization for the Provincial People's Committee to decide on some contents under the authority of the Provincial People's Council; a flexible mechanism with simple procedures to implement production support projects.

Orienting tasks in the coming time, the Deputy Prime Minister requested that localities need to be more responsible and determined in implementing national target programs.

Localities need to study new documents for research, implementation and through the implementation process to propose solutions to difficulties and obstacles and propose amendments. The spirit is that localities must proactively deploy and integrate local capital sources in the implementation to promote the effectiveness of works and projects.

The Deputy Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Planning and Investment to coordinate with the Government Office and relevant ministries and branches to best prepare a report for the National Assembly's supervision delegation.

“This is a “diamond” opportunity to remove difficulties and obstacles related to the Law through Resolutions to facilitate the disbursement of career capital in implementing national target programs,” Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang emphasized.

Comrade Tran Luu Quang also assigned the Government Office to synthesize recommendations and send them to ministries and branches for comments.

Regarding recommendations from localities on difficulties related to the Laws in implementing national target programs, the Government will accept and recommend to the National Assembly for adjustment and amendment.