Vietnam's lawmakers approve merging provinces, slashing nearly 80,000 jobs
Published on: Thu, Jun 12, 2025
By: AFP Text Size: The move to streamline administrative bodies aimed to shift Vietnam's approach from passive management to active public service. (EPA Images pic) HANOI: Vietnam's National Assembly on Thursday approved plans to merge provinces and cities, slashing nearly 80,000 state jobs, as part of major reforms to the communist country's administrative structure. Lawmakers voted to reduce the country's 63 provincial and city administrations to just 34, as the government looks to radically cut state expenditure.
Advertisement The move comes after the government cut the number of ministries and agencies from 30 to 22 in February, resulting in 23,000 job losses. Vietnam's top leader To Lam has said the drastic restructuring of the country's governance is needed if it is to achieve 'fast, stable and sustainable development'. In Thursday's vote, the assembly – a rubber-stamp body in a one-party system – approved the government's plans by 461 ballots to one, with three abstentions. Only 11 provinces and cities are left unchanged by the reform, with the rest all merged. Interior minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra said it amounted to the 'biggest ever revolution since the country was founded' in 1945, state media reported on Wednesday. '79,339 officials will have to be streamlined, quitting their jobs or submitting for early retirement following the merge,' Tra told the National Assembly. One provincial official told AFP he was 'shocked and sad' as he will have to leave his position after more than 30 years of public service. 'I may receive some billion dong in compensation, but I am not happy,' the 58-year-old communist party member said, speaking on condition of anonymity. 'I don't know what to do now though I think I am still completely fit for work.' The streamlined administrative bodies will be expected to 'shift from passive management to active service to the people', said Lam, the Communist Party general secretary and most powerful figure in the country. 'I think the merge is good for all and I fully support it,' said Nguyen Thang Loi, 52, from northern Thai Binh province, which is being merged. 'Though I feel really sad as the name of my native province, which has lasted generations, will now be gone. It's so weird to say I come from Hung Yen,' Loi told AFP. According to the government, all cities and provinces will announce their new leadership on June 30 and start full operation at the beginning of July. In the next few days, the National Assembly will vote on an amended national constitution, under which the country's three-level administrative structure of province, district and commune will be reduced to two. The middle district level will be eliminated and the commune level expanded. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Express
an hour ago
- Daily Express
Defence counsel explains his role
Published on: Thursday, August 21, 2025 Published on: Thu, Aug 21, 2025 By: Sherell Jeffrey Text Size: Ram (centre) with other defence counsels. Kota Kinabalu: The defence counsel Datuk Ram Singh believed representing one of the main accused charged in Zara Qairina Mahathir's case because he was interested in 'uncovering the truth'. 'We want to seek the truth. I always say, children are defenceless,' he said, responding to netizens surprise as to why he was suddenly acting believed for the main accused in the case which has gripped the nation for about a month now. Advertisement Ram Singh who leads a three-member defence team that includes Joan Goh and Elmer Prem Gunasan is doing it on pro bono. He has since obtained a gag order under Section 15 of the Child Act to protect the children involved in the proceedings. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
North Korea's Kim hails 'heroic' army fighting with Russia
SEOUL: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un heaped praise on his nation's troops deployed to help Russia in its war against Ukraine during a meeting with commanders, state media reported Thursday. Kim "conveyed warm encouragement" to the officers and the soldiers serving in Russia's Kursk region, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported, referencing an area where intelligence agencies say Pyongyang has sent more than 10,000 fighters. "Ours is a heroic army," Kim was quoted as saying in a speech to members of the North's military in the capital. "Our army is now doing what it ought to do and what needs to be done. It will do so in the future, too," he added. Kim's remarks come as US President Donald Trump ramps up so-far fruitless attempts to end the Russia-Ukraine war, having held high-profile talks with the leaders of both countries in recent days. But Russian President Vladimir Putin, who last week hailed the North Korean troops as "heroic," has up to now avoided meeting his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy for peace talks. Russia and North Korea have been forging increasingly close ties, including signing a mutual defence pact last year when Putin visited the reclusive state. In April, North Korea confirmed for the first time that it had deployed a contingent of its soldiers to the front line in Ukraine, alongside Russian troops. South Korean and Western intelligence agencies have said Pyongyang sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia's Kursk region in 2024, along with artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems. Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, Seoul has said. --AFP
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
French researcher faces new Russia espionage charges
MOSCOW: A French researcher who is serving three years in a Russian prison is now being investigated for espionage, according to a court filing seen by AFP on Wednesday. Documents showed that Laurent Vinatier is facing a new court hearing on August 25 on espionage charges, which carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. Vinatier, who worked for a Swiss conflict mediation organisation, is one of a number of Westerners who have been arrested in Russia since diplomatic tensions soared over Ukraine. The French government has demanded that Moscow release him and accused Russia of taking Westerners hostage. He was found guilty in October last year of gathering information on the Russian military and of violating its 'foreign agent' law, as he did not register as one. The 'foreign agent' law has been widely used against domestic Kremlin critics. Vinatier worked as an adviser with the Geneva-based Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, and is a veteran researcher on Russia and other post-Soviet countries. He said in court that in his work he always tried to 'present Russia's interests in international relations'.
