The construction sector needs to intensify technological application and attract investment from non-State-owned sources to better satisfy the domestic demand, according to Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai.

Discussing targets set for 2011-15 with the Ministry of Contruction, Hai pointed out that weaknesses in urban area management, the low quality of urban areas, unstable development of the real estate market and inconsistency in construction regulations need to be addressed.

In the next five years, Hai stressed that planning remained one step ahead of population growth and the increasing demand for accommodation in rural and urban areas.

Suitable regulations are also needed to mobilise the maximum amount of social resources for infrastructure implementation, he added.

Minister of Construction Nguyen Dinh Dung said that during the next five years, the sector will focus on improving the quality of construction material production industries and construction equipment manufacturing while expanding construction markets abroad.

At the same time, it will make all efforts to develop urban infrastructure systems, including transportation networks as well as water supply and solid waste treatment facilities.

The ministry would continue its rural planning programmes as scheduled, which will be a fulcra for socio-economic development and narrowing the gap between rural and urban areas.

Plans are currently underway for the ministry to actively cooperate with relevant authorities in inspecting people's abidance by legal documents of investment, housing development and real estate business to timely detect speculation and price distortion activities.

The construction sector has done much to cut public investment, save expenditure, boost social housing programmes and stabilise the materials market, Dung said.

Currently, the average house size per capita is 18.3 sq.m, while 77 percent of urban residents have access to clean water, he added.

To date, the production value of ministerial enterprises has been estimated to have reached 100 trillion VND (4.7 billion USD), a rise of 10.3 percent over the same period last year./.