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Mr. Phan Van Mai, Chairman of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, talks to District 4's voters. |
According to Mr. Phan Van Mai, Chairman of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, the city has faced significant challenges since the beginning of 2023. However, thanks to the collective efforts of the political system, citizens, and businesses, HCMC witnessed a promising economic growth rate of 5.87 percent in the second quarter. Overall, for the first half of 2023, the city's economy is projected to have grown by approximately 3.55 percent.
On June 28, the National Assembly Delegation (Unit 9), including Mr. Phan Van Mai, Member of the Party Central Committee, Standing Deputy Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee, Chairman of the People's Committee of HCMC; Ms. Nguyen Tran Phuong Tran, Chairwoman of the HCMC Women's Union; along with the delegation of the HCMC People's Council (Unit 6), comprising Ms. Thai Thi Bich Lien, Deputy Head of the Organizing Committee of the HCMC Party Committee; Mr. Le Minh Duc, Deputy Chairman of the Legal Department of the HCMC People's Council; and Mr. Vuong Duc Hoang Quan, Chairman of the Council of Ton Duc Thang University, held a meeting with voters in District 4. This meeting took place after the fifth session of the 15th NA and before the tenth session of the 10th HCMC People's Council.
Voters long for early implementation of Resolution No.98
During the meeting, voters in District 4 brought up several topics of concern to the residents. Mentioning Resolution No.98 on the pilot implementation of specific mechanisms and policies for the development of HCMC, voter Nguyen Xuan Hien expressed enthusiasm about the attention given to the city by the National Assembly.
However, Mr. Hien believes that to implement this resolution well, HCMC needs to have an early preparation plan in place to effectively execute Resolution No.98 to promptly address any challenges related to policies and mechanisms and resource mobilization, thereby contributing to the timely resolution of bottlenecks and meeting the development expectations for the city. Furthermore, the implementation of Resolution No.98 should be carried out in line with the spirit of Politburo’s Resolution No.24 and Resolution No.31, and NA’s Resolution No.81.
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A large number of voters in District 4 participates in the meeting. |
On the other hand, voter Vu Chau An observed that the HCMC People's Council has been fulfilling its assigned duties effectively since the beginning of its term. However, there have been challenges and shortcomings in implementing the urban governance model. Therefore, the People's Council needs to take appropriate steps to overcome these issues and create a more conducive environment for localities to develop their socio-economic activities seamlessly.
Voters also express their desire for the city leadership to urgently and comprehensively implement the necessary documents to effectively execute Resolution No.98 to swiftly overcome challenges, remove bottlenecks, and expedite the development of HCMC.
Furthermore, voters also expressed their opinions on various matters, including the vote of confidence, the right to check goods before receiving and using them in the draft amendment of the Law on Consumer Protection, policies to support capital for businesses, and digital transformation in education.
HCMC will have a digital transformation center
During the meeting, the Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee shared with the voters the socio-economic situation of the city in the first six months of the year.
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A voter in District 4 speaks at the meeting. |
According to him, in addition to the common challenges faced by the whole country, HCMC has its specific difficulties. It is due to the city's highly open economy, which is closely intertwined with the global economy, making it directly susceptible to global economic fluctuations. Moreover, significant events in the city, such as the SCB and Van Thinh Phat cases, as well as the psychological aspect where some officials and agencies may be reluctant to take action, also affect the city.
He pointed out that HCMC has been facing internal difficulties since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, compounded by pre-existing issues, the psychology of officials, and the impact of the global situation. As a result, the first six months of the year have been a challenging period for the city. However, through the collective efforts of the political system, and the contribution of citizens and businesses, HCMC's economy showed promising signs of recovery in the second quarter, with a growth rate of 5.87 percent. Overall, it is estimated that the city's economy achieved a growth rate of 3.55 percent in the first six months of 2023.
Regarding the voters' opinions on supporting businesses with preferential loans and stimulating development, Mr. Phan Van Mai shared that since the beginning of 2023, HCMC has been actively promoting initiatives to facilitate the connection between banks and businesses. In addition to the city's efforts, the districts and Thu Duc City have taken proactive measures to establish their connection programs. This demonstrates the city's flexibility in applying Central regulations to address the capital-related challenges faced by businesses. As for suggestions that go beyond the city's authority, the city will continue to propose them to the Government and the State Bank of Vietnam for consideration and feedback.
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At the meeting with voters in District 4 |
At the conference, Mr. Phan Van Mai also devoted considerable time to discussing the city's digital transformation program. According to him, HCMC is actively implementing a robust digital transformation in various sectors, including digital governance, digital economy, and digital society. Particularly, there is a strong focus on digital transformation in healthcare and education to achieve smart healthcare and smart education.
During the recent meeting between the Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee and the Chairmen of the People's Committees of communes, wards, and townships, the city also emphasized its commitment to supporting local governments in implementing digital transformation. This includes a project aimed at enhancing the quality of digital transformation at the grassroots level, with a specific focus on personnel, infrastructure, and data connectivity. If successfully executed, this initiative is expected to alleviate 20 percent-30 percent of the workload pressure on local authorities.
Furthermore, HCMC has partnered with HCMC National University to provide training for human resources in the field of digital transformation. Moreover, the city is planning to establish HCMC digital transformation center to coordinate the implementation of digital transformation activities synchronously.
Making a list of three project groups and problems for resolution
In terms of the city's forthcoming endeavors to sustain and advance the economy, the Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee stated that the city would focus on resolving challenges and impediments faced by citizens and enterprises. To this end, the city would reinforce the Task Force for Resolving Difficulties and Obstacles following the directives of the Prime Minister, and the Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee would be the leader.
Currently, HCMC is in the process of compiling a list of pending issues and projects organized into three groups. Within the category of State-owned enterprises, 232 matters have been resolved, while there are still over 110 remaining issues. The city will proceed to categorize and address them accordingly.
Mr. Phan Van Mai said that on the morning of June 28, the city's leaders held a meeting with the leaders of State-owned enterprises to reach an agreement on addressing all issues and ensuring their complete resolution by the third quarter, at the latest, within this year.
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Mr. Phan Van Mai, Chairman of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, speaks at the meeting. |
In terms of real estate issues, the city has successfully resolved 35 out of 157 matters, leaving 122 issues that will be categorized for resolution. The city's priority is to tackle obstacles that have a significant impact on the real estate and employment markets to stimulate the real estate market, contributing to the development of the city.
The third category consists of projects facing obstacles related to land and investment procedures, comprising a total of 103 projects. Some projects have experienced delays as a result of entanglement in legal cases, equitization processes, and inspections, which may necessitate a temporary slowdown. However, efforts will be concentrated on promptly resolving projects that can be addressed.
"Shortly, every month, HCMC will also release the list of ongoing projects, the number of projects resolved, and new additions for the public to monitor and provide comments," informed the Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee.
Regarding the issues concerning the implementation of Resolution No.98 to pilot specific mechanisms and policies for the development of HCMC, Chairman Phan Van Mai of the HCMC People's Committee stated that the resolution covers seven areas and includes 44 policies and mechanisms. To ensure the successful implementation and desired outcomes of the resolution, HCMC has taken a proactive approach and has already devised a plan.
Specifically, HCMC has prepared 38 specific contents and assigned relevant departments and sectors to prepare for submission to the People's Council.
To provide additional information to the voters, the Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee stated that on July 7, the HCMC Party Committee would organize a city-wide conference for officials to implement and thoroughly understand the resolution, as well as carry out directives from the HCMC Party Committee and the plans of the People's Council and the People's Committee of HCMC.
Furthermore, the HCMC Party Committee will establish a Steering Committee to oversee the implementation of Resolution No.98, with the Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee leading the committee. The committee will comprise various working groups, including advisory and secretarial teams, to leverage intellectual and resource support from domestic and international sources, both within and outside the city, to ensure the effective execution of the resolution.
