The need to strengthen public investment management and settle outstanding debts from the State budget and Government bonds was highlighted in an extensive inspection report published by the Government Inspectorate of Vietnam (GIV).

In the report, the GIV suggested the Government instruct ministries, sectors, and localities review and develop measures to address delayed and extended projects while accelerating the implementation of investment laws.

Other suggestions include drastic settlement of outstanding construction debt in 2015, building a medium-term investment scheme for 2016 - 2020, designing a law on public investment, and strengthening the autonomy and responsibility of localities over their allocated public financial sources.

Ministries, sectors and centrally-run cities were requested to give financial priority to completed, key, and urgent projects and national target programmes on poverty reduction and new-style rural area building, while ensuring capital availability for official development assistance projects on constructing rural road and irrigation systems, and enhancing the education sector.

They were also urged to strengthen the verification and assessment of capital sources during the approval of public investment projects, cancel inefficient projects, and seek alternative resources for effective projects.

According to statistics released by ministries and localities, as many as 740 inspection teams have been set up to examine more than 13,000 projects worth over 502 trillion VND (23.9 billion USD) in total.

During the inspections, nearly 1.25 trillion VND (59.2 million USD) has been collected and returned to the State budget, with 240 units and nearly 200 individuals reprimanded for poor management.-VNA