Truong Canh Tuyen, Deputy Secretary of the Can Tho City Party Committee, announced the information at a meeting of the city's Party Committee on the afternoon of 11/7/2023.

According to Tuyen, in 4/2023, the former Can Tho City People's Committee approved an adjusted 1/500 scale planning for the Tay Do Cultural Center. The center, with a total area of 69.37 hectares, is located in the southern urban area (Hung Phu ward, former Cai Rang district). The plan included a 10.87-hectare centralized administrative area with an estimated cost of 2 trillion VND, with the remaining area designated for cultural, commercial, and service centers.

After the merger with Hau Giang and Soc Trang provinces, the Can Tho City Party Committee's Standing Board reviewed and chose this area as the administrative center for the new city, proposing two options.

The proposed new administrative center will be built south of the Can Tho River. Photo: An Binh

The proposed new administrative center will be built south of the Can Tho River. Photo: An Binh

Option one maintained the original 10.87-hectare administrative area. Option two expanded the area to 20 hectares and increased the total investment to approximately 2.5 trillion VND. This option would provide sufficient office space for the Party, government, Fatherland Front, and socio-political organizations. The remaining 49 hectares would be used for cultural, commercial, and service centers.

"The Can Tho City People's Committee chose option two, and after discussion, the Standing Board of the City Party Committee also agreed on this option," Tuyen said.

At the meeting, Do Thanh Binh, Secretary of the Can Tho City Party Committee, stated that the current administrative center, mainly located in Ninh Kieu district, has fragmented and deteriorated infrastructure. It no longer meets the operational needs of a large city after the merger.

"Building a new centralized administrative area is essential to meet working needs and serve the people," Binh said. He added that after the City Party Committee reaches a consensus, the City People's Committee will be assigned to urgently implement the project, striving to commence construction by the end of the year.

After the merger, Can Tho City covers an area of over 6,360 km2 with a population of over 4.19 million people across 103 communes and wards. It is one of six centrally-administered cities in Vietnam.

An Binh