Devolution of power in HCM City has made many administrative procedures smoother. (Photo courtesy of sggp.org.vn) HCM City (VNS/VNA) – Ho Chi Minh City solicits proposals thatwill enable further decentralisation of power, Vice Chairman of the provincialPeople’s Committee Tran Vinh Tuyen has said.
Speaking at a seminar held toreview recent decentralisation efforts in districts, many officials agreed thatdevolution has reduced the amount of time needed to complete administrativetasks, making the public and businesses happy.
According to the Director of the Departmentof Home Affairs, Truong Van Lam, a devolution project begun last Octoberrequires authorities down the line to perform 85 tasks done earlier by thePeople’s Committee in four areas: urban development and environment; economy,budget and public works; culture and society; and judiciary and home affairs.
Two decisions that came intoeffect in January have helped speed up administrative procedures to the benefitof the public and businesses.
For example, while allottingprincipal for a private secondary school used to take 20 days, decentralisationof authority means the Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs cannow do it in 12 days.
Similar changes can be seen insomething like making an environmental impact assessment by the High-tech ParkManagement for investment projects.
The time it takes has come downfrom 50 days to 42, with obvious benefits.
The chiefs of the health,transport and labour, invalids and social affairs departments confirmed thatadministrative procedures have become smoother than before.
Encourage furtherdevolution
On behalf of the advisory agencyfor the devolution project, Director of the Department of Home Affairs Truong VanLam said current decentralisation activities are rather immediate solutions andtheir outcomes would be used as a basis for further devolution.
Decentralisation has actuallybeen occurring for many years, but only recently has it been consolidated intoan official programme.
Tuyen said the programme had notonly made administrative procedures smoother but also enabled authorities downthe line to improve their skills.
District authorities wereencouraged to recommend tasks for which authority could be devolved to the wardlevel, he added./.
VNA
