Streamlining administrative procedures in Nghe An: "Three improvements" in serving the people.
Administrative procedure reform in Nghe An is entering an accelerated phase as the two-tiered local government has been officially operational for two months.
With the motto "3 more": Closer to the people - More transparent - More convenient, the process of receiving, resolving, and delivering results for administrative procedures to individuals and organizations has seen a significant improvement.
"When small things are done well, big things will be accomplished successfully."
Mr. Ha Huu Son, a resident of Thanh Vinh ward, came to the ward's Public Administrative Service Center to complete the procedure for converting his land use right certificate from a red certificate to a pink certificate.
Contrary to the common perception that land procedures are cumbersome, this time he received detailed guidance right at the reception desk, his documents were thoroughly checked, his questions were answered immediately, and he didn't have to wait long.
"Everything is clear and transparent; I find things much more favorable than before," he said.
Thanh Vinh ward was established by merging six wards and communes of the former Vinh City, and currently has over 123,000 inhabitants, making it one of the most populous wards in the province.
In July 2025 alone, the center received 2,718 applications, mainly related to authentication, civil registration, and social welfare. Despite the large volume of applications, the rate of timely and accurate processing reached 99.9%.
While Thanh Vinh is a "hot spot" for applications, Luong Minh commune, located 210 km from the provincial center, faces a different challenge.
The commune has only 1,162 households with 5,199 inhabitants, but they live scattered across 10 villages spanning an area of over 228 km²; approximately 50% of the population does not have smartphones, and the commune's Public Administrative Service Center lacks many basic equipment and specialized personnel.
According to Nguyen Thi Hai Yen, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Luong Minh Commune and Director of the Public Administrative Service Center: The People's Committee of the commune has issued a plan for "Digital Literacy for the People," established a commune-level digital technology team and village-level digital technology teams, and mobilized youth union members to directly guide people in submitting online applications. The commune police also participate in supporting people in using VNeID.
Two cross-sections from Thanh Vinh ward and Luong Minh commune reflect the diverse landscape of public administration in Nghe An. In urban areas, the biggest challenge is the volume of paperwork; in mountainous areas, the difficulties lie in infrastructure, human resources, and access to public services. But the common thread is the effort of local authorities in serving the people according to the "three more" criteria.
From July 1st, 2025, Nghe An province will officially operate a two-tiered local government system. Provincial leaders have determined that success can only be achieved when the administrative "gateways" at the grassroots level are smooth, serving the needs of the people quickly and effectively.
At the provincial level, administrative procedures are processed at the Public Administrative Service Center with the participation of 12 departments and 2 vertical agencies, totaling 1,755 procedures.
At the commune level, localities have arranged offices, facilities, equipment, and staff to work at the Public Administrative Service Center to receive applications, process and return results of administrative procedures according to the one-stop mechanism and the integrated one-stop mechanism.
After more than a month of implementation, the Provincial People's Committee assessed that the commune-level public administrative service centers are operating synchronously, the service attitude of the staff is highly appreciated, and most applications are processed correctly and ahead of schedule.
In mid-August, a delegation from the Ministry of Science and Technology conducted a field inspection and concluded that, despite some areas needing improvement, Nghe An is one of the localities that has implemented the program well.
Transparency in 3 aspects
Recognizing administrative procedure reform as a central, continuous task and a breakthrough in the administrative reform process, Nghe An province consistently adheres to the principle of increasing transparency in administrative procedures across all three aspects: required documents, processing time, and fees and charges.
The Provincial People's Committee has issued 28 documents directing departments, agencies, localities, provincial and commune-level public administrative service centers to receive and process administrative procedures electronically, meeting the requirements for uninterrupted processing of administrative procedures for organizations and individuals after the reorganization of administrative units and the implementation of a two-tiered local government.
During the peak period from June 20, 2025 to August 6, 2025, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee issued 103 decisions announcing the list of administrative procedures, 91 decisions approving internal processes and electronic processes in resolving administrative procedures; and issued 205 administrative procedures to be implemented regardless of the administrative boundaries of 8 departments and agencies.
Nghe An province has also announced and made public 2,156 administrative procedures (1,754 provincial-level procedures, 402 commune-level procedures) on the National Database of Administrative Procedures and has established electronic processes and configured public services for 100% of these procedures on the provincial Administrative Procedure Resolution Information System; of which 498 administrative procedures provide fully online public services; and 1,648 administrative procedures provide partially online public services.
To improve the efficiency of document processing in the digital environment, the province focuses on technology and data infrastructure. The Department of Science and Technology operates the Data.nghean.gov.vn data warehouse. The data integration and sharing platform (LGSP) has recorded more than 2.2 million connections.
The Provincial People's Committee Office organized training for officials from 130 communes and wards; the Provincial Public Administration Service Center assigned staff to provide support and created a Zalo group to promptly answer questions from local authorities.
Although significant progress has been made in administrative procedure reform, improving the efficiency of handling procedures for citizens and businesses in Nghe An still faces many difficulties.
The application of online public services at the commune level is still limited due to people's limited access to technology, lingering apprehension, and weak network infrastructure in some areas.
Some officials and civil servants are not yet proficient in information technology. The interconnected software systems for birth registration, death registration, civil registration, household registration, etc., are not yet operating stably.
In early August, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, Le Hong Vinh, requested the establishment of an inter-agency task force to provide guidance and resolve difficulties; at the same time, he assigned the Department of Science and Technology to review and ensure the smooth operation of information technology infrastructure, digital transformation, and databases.
Initial results show that, whether in urban "hotspots" or remote areas, local authorities in Nghe An are striving to ensure that people receive faster, more transparent, and more convenient services.
The success of the two-tiered local government system lies not only in streamlining the administrative apparatus but also in the quality of service provided for even the smallest procedures, in line with the spirit: "If small things are done well, then big things will be accomplished."