The Government Office announced on 11/9 the conclusions of Deputy Prime Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra following a meeting with the Ministry of Home Affairs. This reorganization must stem from practical needs, aligning with the goal of forming core, exemplary communes and wards.

The Ministry of Home Affairs is tasked with guiding localities to establish urban commune-level administrative unit models that suit their specific realities. For areas that have completed their dossiers, the Ministry will appraise them and submit them to the Government for reporting to the National Assembly Standing Committee in October.

The Deputy Prime Minister also requested the Ministry of Home Affairs to finalize models for core, exemplary commune-level administrative units. This report is due to the Party Committee of the Government for submission to the Politburo before 15/9.

A community self-governance model will also be developed, aligning with the rearrangement of villages and residential groups and new requirements. This content must be reported to the Politburo and the Secretariat in September.

Cau Giay Ward People's Committee headquarters, July 2026. Photo: Hoang Giang

Following the rearrangement of provincial and commune-level administrative units and the conclusion of district-level operations in mid-2025, the country will have 34 provinces and cities, along with 3,321 communes, wards, and special zones. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, 705 commune-level units do not meet the standards, including 17 units lacking both area and population, 529 units lacking sufficient area, and 159 units lacking sufficient population.

The Ministry of Home Affairs assessed that maintaining small-scale units disperses investment resources, increases management costs, and limits the provision of public services and socio-economic development.

However, Prime Minister Le Minh Hung affirmed that the Central Government does not intend to continue widespread rearrangement of communes and wards. Localities can proactively review and propose adjustments if truly necessary, based on their actual situation and legal regulations.

On 11/9, Phan Trung Tuan, Director of the Local Government Department at the Ministry of Home Affairs, stated that any rearrangement of communes and wards must be proposed by the localities and thoroughly evaluated. To date, the Ministry has not received any such proposals.

Vu Tuan