Commune-level public service centers: Addressing challenges at the grassroots level.
The implementation of a two-tiered local government model and the merger of administrative units have created an urgent need to reorganize the personnel structure at the grassroots level. In this context, the establishment of public service centers is expected to be a breakthrough in addressing the overload situation and improving the quality of service to the people.
Reduce pressure from staff shortages.
Since Luong Minh commune implemented a two-tiered local government system, Mr. Nguyen Van La, a land and agriculture official, has hardly had a day off. Mr. Nguyen Van La confided: "The workload at the commune is now considered almost equivalent to that of the former district level. Officials have to handle many new and diverse areas. Mr. La himself and his colleague, Mr. Nguyen Van Hieu, are currently in charge of land, agriculture, environment, forestry, and veterinary services."
“Nearly 90% of Luong Minh commune's area is forest land, requiring officials and forces to constantly monitor and communicate with the forest management and protection department. Besides visiting the field, Mr. Hieu and I also advise on the issuance of documents regarding veterinary services and vaccinations, and frequently visit the field. When implementing the two-tiered local government system, the two of us have to coordinate work even on Saturdays and Sundays. There were days when we had to bring our computers home to work on reports and process documents late into the night. Not only us, but most other departments are juggling multiple tasks at once due to a shortage of personnel,” said Mr. Nguyen Van La.
By December 2025, Luong Minh commune will establish a Public Service Supply Center, which will add one officer in charge of agriculture and environment and one officer in charge of agricultural extension, helping to share the workload with colleagues.
Similarly, in Tam Thai commune, Mr. Lo Duong Khanh - Chairman of the People's Committee of the commune - said that from the time the commune government was newly established until November 2025, the commune has been short of agricultural extension officers. This is the time when various diseases affecting crops and livestock are breaking out strongly, especially African swine fever. Due to the shortage of agricultural extension officers, the commune has had to hire services and people to administer vaccinations and conduct awareness campaigns for the people, incurring considerable costs (approximately 18 million VND). The addition of agricultural extension officers has somewhat resolved this shortage.
In late December 2025, with the New Year just around the corner, Mr. Ta Quang Dung started his new job at the Phuc Loc Commune Public Service Center.
Mr. Dung has decades of experience working at the former Nghi Loc District Radio and Television Station and later at...Cultural, Sports and Information Center.
"After the implementation of the two-tiered government system, the center's staff were assigned to the communes. I myself was assigned to the Phuc Loc Commune Public Service Center. Fortunately, I'm working near home, but currently I don't have the necessary equipment, so I'm temporarily filming and taking photos with my smartphone," Mr. Ta Quang Dung confided.
Proposing a mechanism for recruiting part-time staff.
Mr. Nguyen Phu Dong, Head of the Economic Department of Phuc Loc Commune, said that although the staffing situation has eased somewhat, Phuc Loc currently lacks personnel with expertise in healthcare, education, and construction. The shortage of qualified personnel in these fields leads to difficulties in evaluating, advising, and managing activities related to their areas of responsibility. Currently, investment projects in the commune are temporarily suspended due to a shortage of project management staff. While independent units could be hired to conduct the verification, regulations require the final appraisal report to be prepared by the state management agency. Hiring external contractors while simultaneously being responsible for management, despite a lack of expertise, creates a complicated process.
The urgent establishment of specialized departments and the clear assignment of responsibilities for each area of expertise is the optimal solution proposed by those working directly at the grassroots level. Only with specialization can civil servants focus on developing their professional skills and providing high-quality services, especially in fields such as agricultural extension, construction, healthcare, and education, thereby contributing to the sustainable economic and social development of the locality. However, it is also noted that many communes and wards currently require semi-specialized support for various tasks, but lack recruitment mechanisms.
Many local leaders have expressed that, to compensate for the shortage, localities are having to assign part-time staff to support the work of civil servants. Although this team works stably and understands the local area, they face difficulties in terms of recruitment examinations or cannot compete fairly with personnel from the plains, leading to a long-term shortage of local human resources.
Mr. Lo Kham Kha, Chairman of the People's Committee of Nga My commune, said: “The commune's High-Quality Service Supply Center has just been established but currently only has two members, including one agricultural extension officer and one cultural and information officer. A land administration officer will be added soon. The commune still lacks 18 people, across the Party Committee, People's Council, People's Committee, and Fatherland Front Committee of the commune. The government sector alone is short 10 people in areas such as education, health, internal affairs, and information technology… Furthermore, difficulties remain as each position in the Public Service Supply Center belongs to a different specialized field, making it difficult to support each other. Moreover, the regulations for establishing the Public Service Supply Center do not specifically guide the coordination between departments, so it is likely that further revisions and additions to the functions and positions of civil servants will be necessary.”
Further elaborating on solutions to improve the quality of grassroots human resources, Mr. Lo Kham Kha expressed his desire for the province to have mechanisms and policies to recruit part-time officials into civil service positions, creating a local pool of personnel. In addition, equally important is supporting the training of commune-level officials to enhance their in-depth professional knowledge and skills.
On the morning of December 16th, the Standing Committee of the Government held a meeting on the implementation of the two-tiered local government model. Deputy Prime Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra requested central ministries and agencies to review and improve the entire system of institutions and policies related to the operation of the two-tiered local government. Accordingly, ministries and agencies are required to focus on urging and guiding the restructuring of public service units, with a focus on education and health; and to provide guidance on establishing public service units providing essential public services at the commune level, especially in the fields of agriculture, environment, and construction, in order to ensure the provision of multi-sectoral and multi-field services to meet the needs of the people.