Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyen Van Sinh: Dong Nai needs to accelerate social housing development

On August 21, Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyen Van Sinh had a working session with the Dong Nai Department of Construction (DoC) on two key issues: the development of social housing in the province and the implementation of construction sector tasks under the two-tier local government model.

Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyen Van Sinh speaks at the working session with the DoC. Photo: Hoang Loc

According to Do Thanh Phuong, Deputy Director of the DoC, in 2025, Dong Nai aims to build more than 8,300 social housing units, of which over 4,200 units are expected to be completed and put into use. This is also the target assigned by the Government.

Since the beginning of the year, Dong Nai has started construction and is implementing 12 projects with more than 4,300 housing units. In addition, the province has zoned over 1,000 hectares of land for social housing development and is considering allocating nine projects to investors under the pilot resolution on special mechanisms, with a scale of over 10,000 units.

For housing dedicated to officials, civil servants, and public employees after the provincial merger, Dong Nai provincial government is assigning the Provincial Construction Investment Project Management Board to propose investment policies for two large-scale projects with a total of more than 1,100 units. The province has also introduced four land plots to the Ministry of National Defense for the construction of housing for armed forces personnel, and has planned two land plots for the Ministry of Public Security to build housing for the armed forces.

During the 2025-2030 period, the Government assigned Dong Nai to complete nearly 64,700 units. The province has so far approved investment policies for 37 projects with a total of more than 37,000 units, while the remaining projects will continue to be considered.

Director of DoC Nguyen Anh Tuan reports several challenges to the Ministry’s leader. Photo: Hoang Loc

The DoC pointed out some current difficulties, such as few investors showing interest in social housing due to profit margin restrictions; certain rural land plots zoned for low-rise housing no longer suitable for development; making it difficult to launch the implementation. The department proposed that the Ministry of Construction (MoC) study amendments to the Housing Law 2023 to allow the construction of separate social housing units in rural areas, resolve obstacles regarding regulations on building worker dormitories in industrial zones, and issue specific guidelines on appraisal, investor assignment, and reimbursement of technical infrastructure investment costs for 20% land fund in commercial housing projects.

Regarding construction sector’s tasks under the two-tier local government model, since July 1 the DoC has announced 204 administrative procedures, more than 100 of which have been decentralized and delegated between provincial and communal levels, all processed online. Document receipt and return have been conducted smoothly in post-merger period. The department is drafting documents to submit to the provincial People’s Committee for decentralization of 17 contents to ward- and commune-level People’s Committees.

As for traffic infrastructure management, many challenges remain. Since July 1, the MoC has handed over four national highways to the locality, with many degraded sections requiring more than VND 1.3 trillion for repair and upgrades. The department requested the MoC and the Ministry of Finance to consider allocating capital support. At the commune level, authorities have just been assigned to manage former district and commune roads, but face limited manpower and large funding needs for maintenance.

Leaders of the MoC, the provincial People’s Committee, and investors perform the groundbreaking rite for three social housing projects in the province. Photo: CTV

In his concluding remarks at the working session, Deputy Minister Nguyen Van Sinh praised the province’s efforts, noting that as of now it had already started and implemented 4,300 housing units (exceeding the 2025 target of 4,200 units).

The Deputy Minister requested the DoC to strengthen inspection and supervision of project progress for early completion. He also urged close coordination with ministries and sectors already getting land handover and land fund allocation from the provincial government to implement social housing projects for the armed forces and other groups.

“Dong Nai is a province with a large population and many industrial zones, so the demand for social housing is very high. The province needs to focus on strongly developing this type of housing to meet people’s needs, at least meeting the target assigned by the Prime Minister,” Deputy Minister Nguyen Van Sinh emphasized.

Regarding tasks under the two-tier local government system, the Deputy Minister asked the DoC to soon advise the provincial People’s Committee to issue all necessary legal documents for implementation at the communal level. Concerning the department’s proposals, the MoC will provide official responses to the locality after the working session, and for issues beyond its authority, the ministry will take note and report them to higher-level agencies.

On the same morning, Deputy Minister Nguyen Van Sinh and Member of Provincial Party Committee, Vice Chairwoman of the Dong Nai People’s Committee Nguyen Thi Hoang attended the groundbreaking ceremony for three social housing projects, including K-Home Avenue, K-Home Midtown, and K-Home Skyview in Nhon Trach and Trang Bom communes. The projects, all developed by Kim Oanh Land,   cover nearly 18 hectares and will supply about 5,500 apartments.

By Hoang Loc

Translated by M.Nguyet-Thu Ha