Seamless resolution of administrative procedures
In the morning of last Tuesday, July 8, Ha Thi Bich Huong visited the Public Administrative Service Center in Saigon Ward to have her signature verified. The entire process, from submitting her application to receiving the result, took approximately one hour.
Huong had considered visiting the previous week but postponed due to concerns about potential delays during the system’s initial launch. “Today, both the reception and results-processing counters were operating in a coordinated and seamless manner. The wait was a bit long, but for the first week of a new system, this meets public expectations”, she remarked.
Tran Thi Thuy Linh, a civil servant at the center, noted the significant increase in workload compared to the previous ward-level administration. The new, more populous ward now handles many tasks formerly managed at the district level, leading to a much higher volume of public service requests.
“After seven working days, we’ve had both advantages and difficulties, but everything is now settling into a groove”, Linh shared. “I feel that officials and citizens alike are adapting very well to the new model.”
At the Public Administrative Service Center in Vung Tau Ward, 864 dossiers had been received as of July 8, the majority (521 papers) for certified copies and authentication. These were followed by business registrations (163 papers), civil status matters (114 papers), and land procedures (36 papers). For the most part, urgent procedures were resolved quickly, with 605 dossiers completed on schedule and 259 still within their processing deadlines.
However, some localities are still grappling with infrastructure and technical hurdles. According to Deputy Director Truong Thi Phuong Thao of the Vung Tau Ward Public Administrative Service Center, they have encountered issues such as being unable to access data on the civil status software and an incomplete citizen database hindering information retrieval.
The new business registration system is also experiencing glitches, and results from the Ministry of Finance’s software are delayed because it has not yet been updated with the new administrative boundaries, preventing tax code synchronization.
Deputy Director Mac Hong Linh of the Ben Thanh Ward Public Administrative Service Center highlighted spatial constraints. The center’s headquarters, which also houses the ward’s Standing People’s Committee and some specialized departments under the committee, was designed to accommodate 30-40 staff but now houses over 80. He proposed that the center be provided with a more spacious and presentable public reception area to better serve citizens and staff.
Conversely, the Vung Tau Ward Center is relatively well-equipped, with a professionally competent staff, according to Deputy Director Truong Thi Phuong Thao. The center has also mobilized non-specialized personnel and youth volunteers to assist the public.
In the remote commune of Hoa Hoi, Party Secretary Huynh Son Thai reported that all government bodies are operating smoothly and staff morale is stable.
High marks for citizen satisfaction
The initial days of the new system saw a high volume of citizens visiting the commune-level service centers. Many, particularly older residents, were unfamiliar with the new procedures and the use of online public services, and many had not yet updated their VNeID digital identity to Level 2.
In response, all centers have established support desks to guide citizens. Nguyen Van Thang, a resident from Vung Tau Ward, commented, “The new ward is large and populous, so the center is quite busy, but the staff provided thorough, enthusiastic, and thoughtful guidance.”
The Ben Thanh Ward Center has also been bustling. To manage the queues, the center has over 10 civil servants working continuously at the reception counters. After receiving his certified documents in just 30 minutes, Pham Minh Ha, a local here, noted, “While it’s not a complete breakthrough yet, resolving a file this quickly with so many people waiting shows the immense effort of the ward’s officials. I hope this work rhythm is maintained and continues to improve.”
According to Deputy Director Mac Hong Linh, the Ben Thanh Ward Center had processed 771 dossiers by the afternoon of July 8. “Initial system glitches have been resolved, and operations are now stable”, he said. “In addition to processing procedures, these days, our staff have also handled numerous public inquiries about the new regulations.”
Complementing the efforts of public officials, since July 7, over 150 youth volunteer teams have been deployed across the city. They are assisting citizens with administrative procedures and helping them install and use the VNeID application, dedicating approximately 37,000 hours to support the new local governments.
Quach Tri Dieu, a civil servant in the Ben Thanh Ward Public Administrative Service Center proudly shared, “Our spirit is to serve every citizen who comes to us, not just to work until closing time. We are implementing new processes while simultaneously updating our knowledge to handle tasks devolved from the district level. With many new central government documents being issued recently, it’s very demanding. We always look to the results and the satisfaction of the people to motivate ourselves and each other to strive even harder.”
Nguyen Thanh Nhan, a, local resident in Khanh Hoi Ward commented, “I went to the Khanh Hoi Ward People’s Committee, and the civil servant there explained and guided me through every step of submitting my application on the public service portal, which made it very easy and fast. The officials were very friendly, despite being busy with many other people. Many procedures have been decentralized to the commune level, but not everyone is aware. I believe the local government should conduct more outreach about this, especially at neighborhood level. I also hope for continued system upgrades to make the online portal even easier to access, even from home.”
