Enhancing public services to match standards of new urban area

The official establishment of Dong Nai city, alongside the upgrading of 10 communes into wards, has opened up new development potential for the locality.

Alongside public excitement over this important milestone, many voters at recent meetings with National Assembly deputies following the first session of the 16th National Assembly (NA) expressed expectations that the public service system would continue to receive synchronized investment and quality improvements in line with the requirements of a modern urban center.

Public services must keep pace with urbanization

Dong Nai currently has a population of nearly 5 million people. The formation of 10 new wards continues to expand urban development space, creating favorable conditions for the locality to invest in completing infrastructure, improving the quality of governance and public services; at the same time, it poses a requirement to continue improving the responsiveness of the education, health, transportation, environment, water supply and drainage, and public administration systems.

People are guided to complete administrative procedures at the Public Administration Service Center of An Vien Commune. Photo: Ho Thao

Opinions raised at recent voter meetings with NA deputies show that residents are concerned not only about administrative changes, but also about the quality and responsiveness of public services during this new stage of development.

Voter Tran Ngoc Linh from Xuan Loc Ward proposed that authorities continue allocating resources to comprehensively develop socio-economic infrastructure while increasing investment in healthcare, education, technical infrastructure and essential public services to meet growing public demand amid rapid urbanization. The proposal reflects residents’ expectations that administrative upgrades must go hand in hand with improved service quality. In particular, social infrastructure and public services need to be developed in a synchronized manner suitable for rapid population growth.

At another voter meeting with NA deputies, voter Phan Van Vuong in Trang Dai Ward said local residents were pleased with Dong Nai’s new city status and hoped it would create better conditions for synchronized infrastructure investment, improved public services and higher living standards. Besides the expectations, many social issues continue to be reflected by constituents. According to Vuong, educational infrastructure in some rapidly developing residential areas needs continued investment. Trang Dai Ward, for example, currently does not have a public high school, creating difficulties for students and parents in terms of commuting and access to education.

The reality in rapidly growing residential areas shows that the demand for social infrastructure investment is increasing, requiring early planning and preparation of land funds for schools, medical facilities, and public works to meet long-term development requirements.

Not only in the education sector, drainage infrastructure and urban environment are also issues of concern to many voters. The situation of localized flooding during heavy rains and environmental pollution in some areas shows that technical infrastructure still needs to be continuously invested in and completed to better meet urban development requirements. Voters proposed systematic, synchronous, and long-term investment solutions.

Continuing to improve public administration quality

In addition to technical infrastructure and social infrastructure, the quality of administrative procedure resolution is also an issue of concern to many voters as the locality enters the phase of operating the urban government model.

Voters express their opinions at a voter meeting in Tan Phu Ward.

At a recent voter meeting in Tan Phu Ward, voter Tran Huu Thanh said that following administrative restructuring and the implementation of the new governance model, authorities should continue accelerating administrative reforms, particularly in land-related procedures and services directly affecting residents.

Many voters believed that only when public services are improved, operate effectively and provide increasingly better support can the administrative upgrading process truly create meaningful transformation and help Dong Nai develop into a leading growth center of the Southern key economic region.

According to voter feedback, some land-related procedures still involve many steps, and the resolution time in some cases still remains prolonged. Voters propose that functional agencies continue to review processes, cut unnecessary intermediate steps; clearly publicize dossiers and resolution deadlines; and at the same time, promote technology application, enhance the responsibility of cadres and civil servants in receiving and processing dossiers. This underscores the need for the urban government apparatus to continue innovating service methods towards professionalism and modernity, better meeting the needs of people and businesses.

It is evident that what people are waiting for is not merely a change in administrative boundaries, but tangible improvements in quality of life. From education, healthcare, transportation and environment to administrative procedures and essential urban utilities, all sectors require continued synchronized investment and upgrading to better meet public needs.

By Ho Thao - Translated by Mai Nga, Thu Ha