Streamlining the apparatus – a foundation for Dong Nai’s development

In 2025, thoroughly implementing the resolutions and conclusions of the Central Government, under the direct and comprehensive leadership of the Provincial Party Committee and the decisive direction and administration of the Provincial People’s Committee, Dong Nai mobilized the strength of the entire political system to carry out a revolution on large-scale, comprehensive, and unprecedented administrative apparatus reorganization.

Officials and Youth Union members of Phuoc Thai Commune assist residents with administrative procedures at the commune Public Administration Service Center. Photo: Ho Thao

This was an especially heavy and complex task, exerting profound impacts on the organizational apparatus and the contingent of officials, civil servants, and public employees. At the same time, it was a prominent hallmark clearly demonstrating Dong Nai’s political resolve, leadership capacity, and effectiveness in direction and organization of implementation in 2025.

Ensuring smooth operation

In 2025, pursuant to National Assembly’s Resolution No. 202/2025/QH15 on the merger of the former Dong Nai and Binh Phuoc provinces, the new Dong Nai Province officially came into operation. With an expanded scale of administrative units and increasingly high requirements for state management, there was an urgent need to strongly renew leadership and management methods, as well as the organization of task implementation. In that context, reorganizing and consolidating the administrative apparatus toward streamlining, effectiveness, and efficiency was identified as a key, overarching task of the province.

From the very beginning of 2025, the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial People’s Committee issued numerous important guidelines, plans, and schemes, forming the political and legal basis for the reorganization of the administrative apparatus. On that basis, the Provincial People’s Committee directed the implementation of a two-phase roadmap for reorganizing provincial-level specialized agencies, ensuring stability and continuity in administrative operations, avoiding disruptions in state management and public service delivery.

Under this roadmap, the province completed the establishment of specialized agencies under the new Dong Nai Provincial People’s Committee, while fully promulgating regulations on functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structures of departments and sectors, creating a unified legal framework for the post-merger apparatus. As of July 1, 2025, the merged administrative apparatus officially came into smooth operation, with no gaps in state management.

“All sectors and levels, with the home affairs sector acting as the core, must continue to focus on refining the administrative apparatus toward streamlining and efficiency; strictly manage staffing and job positions; synchronously implement the reorganization of public service units and internal streamlining within agencies and units, as a basis for salary policy reform. Thereby, a unified and smooth administrative apparatus can be built, operating with proper functions, clear responsibilities, and in line with development requirements in the new phase.”

— Nguyen Thi Hoang, Member of the Provincial Party Committee and Vice Chairwoman of the Provincial People’s Committee, speaking at the 2025 review conference of the home affairs sector and the deployment of tasks for 2026.

A particularly significant and meaningful result is that after reorganization, the total number of specialized agencies under the Dong Nai Provincial People’s Committee was streamlined to 14 departments and one department-equivalent administrative organization. Compared with the total of 30 specialized agencies of the two provinces before the merger, 15 focal points were reduced, equivalent to a 50% reduction.

Beyond streamlining at the “focal point” level, Dong Nai also decisively reviewed and reorganized internal structures within departments and sectors. The province now has 106 specialized divisions and equivalents, a reduction of 87 divisions compared with that before, corresponding to a 45.07% decrease. To date, 100% (15/15) of specialized agencies under the Provincial People’s Committee have issued complete regulations on functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structures, ensuring clarity in personnel and tasks, without overlaps or omissions in state management functions.

Alongside the reorganization of administrative agencies, Dong Nai has placed strong emphasis on reforming and restructuring public service units in strict accordance with Central Resolution No. 19-NQ/TW. The Provincial People’s Committee issued a unified implementation plan across the province, gradually standardizing the organization and operation of public service units. For large public service units under central authority, the province proactively completed dossiers and submitted them to relevant ministries, sectors, and the Prime Minister for consideration and decision in accordance with regulations.

Synchronized participation

One of the most prominent hallmarks of 2025 was Dong Nai’s implementation of commune-level administrative unit reorganization in conjunction with piloting the two-tier local government model under Resolution No. 1662/NQ-UBTVQH15 of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee.

From 270 commune-level administrative units of the two provinces before the merger, after reorganization, Dong Nai Province now has only 95 commune-level administrative units, including 72 communes and 23 wards, achieving a 64.81% reduction. This is a very deep reduction, clearly reflecting the province’s high political determination and broad consensus across the political system and among the people. After the abolition of the district level, the province formed 279 specialized agencies under commune-level People’s Committees, while also establishing and putting into operation 95 commune-level public administration service centers, which have become modern “one-stop-shop” focal points, completely replacing the role of former district-level one-stop-shop division.

According to Nguyen Thanh Hien, Chairman of Dak Lua Commune People’s Committee, in the initial phase of operation, the commune had not yet organized department-level units; personnel were arranged according to job positions while the workload increased sharply, with many tasks transferred from the district level to the grassroots, creating considerable difficulties and pressure. In response to new requirements, the commune proactively implemented appropriate solutions, promoting solidarity and responsibility among officials and civil servants to ensure smooth operations and effective service to the people.

Based on practical summaries, the Dak Lua Commune People’s Committee promptly reported and proposed adjustments to the organizational arrangement to the Provincial People’s Committee. Taking in grassroots recommendations, the Provincial People’s Committee directed the establishment of specialized divisions and subordinate units under the Phu Ly and Dak Lua Commune People’s Committees from October 15, 2025, thereby removing difficulties and ensuring stable, effective, and efficient operation of grassroots government apparatuses.

Sharing at the 2025 review conference of the home affairs sector, Nguyen Huu Dinh, Member of the Provincial Party Committee and Director of the Department of Home Affairs, stated that 2025 was a year with an extremely large workload and unprecedented challenges, especially in advising on apparatus reorganization and resolving regimes and policies for thousands of redundant officials, civil servants, and public employees. With the spirit of “resolve – humanity – responsibility,” the entire sector made great efforts to complete its tasks, ensuring that the new administrative apparatus operated smoothly from July 1, 2025, without interruptions in management and public service.

The results achieved in 2025, from the provincial to grassroots levels, not only addressed immediate requirements but also created an important foundation for building a streamlined, modern, effective, and efficient administrative system in Dong Nai Province, providing increasingly better services to the people.

By Ho Thao – Translated by Trieu Ngan, Thu Ha