Dong Thap Province Seeks Solutions to Accelerate Public Investment Fund Disbursement

Dong Thap Province convened a meeting on September 17 to review the disbursement of public investment capital for 2026 and the progress of public investment projects within the province. According to the Provincial Department of Finance, as of September 14, the total disbursed public investment capital in the province exceeded VND 12 trillion (approximately USD 500 million), comprising about VND 9.5 trillion from the local budget and nearly VND 2.5 trillion from the central budget. The total disbursed amount reached over VND 6 trillion, accounting for nearly 53% of the plan assigned by the Prime Minister and over 50% of the plan assigned by the Provincial People's Council. Specifically, local budget capital disbursement was nearly VND 5.5 trillion, achieving over 62% of the Prime Minister's assigned plan. Meanwhile, central budget capital disbursement was approximately VND 630 billion, reaching just over 23% of the Prime Minister's assigned plan. The low disbursement rate of central budget capital is affecting the overall disbursement results of Dong Thap Province. Key projects with low disbursement rates include: the Cao Lanh - An Huu Expressway Construction Project, Phase 1 (Component 1), which disbursed VND 51.2 billion, or 7.2% of the plan; Component 2 of the same project, which disbursed VND 135.1 billion, or 16.6% of the plan; and the Provincial Road 857 Construction Project (National Highway 30 - Provincial Road 845 section), which disbursed VND 55 billion, or 13.1% of the plan. Currently, Dong Thap Province has 29 main project investors. Among them, seven investors, including the Department of Finance (99.9%), the Political School (96.6%), and the Agricultural Project Management Board (84.8%), have disbursement rates higher than the provincial average. Twelve investors have rates below the average, and ten investors have not yet disbursed any funds. The Provincial Department of Finance stated that projects facing delays in disbursement are encountering numerous difficulties, such as slow completion of investment preparation, issues with compensation and land clearance, and a lack of resettlement land. Furthermore, the soaring prices of construction materials like sand, stone, cement, and fuel, along with a scarcity of quality construction stone, are significant problems. These factors have led to 32 projects being backlog and prolonged. Speaking at the meeting, Chairman of the Dong Thap Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Thanh Nhan emphasized that for projects with low or no disbursement, investors must clearly report the reasons and their implementation capabilities by the end of the year. If they are unable to utilize the allocated capital, they should propose adjustments and transfer resources to projects that can proceed. Investors were also urged to proactively prepare the 2027 public investment plan and complete procedures and investment decisions for eligible projects to allow for capital allocation as early as January 2027, and to pre-determine the demand for materials, labor, and machinery. Regarding the 2026-2030 medium-term public investment plan, Dong Thap Province will continue to review and recalculate to concentrate resources on important projects, connectivity projects, and tasks that drive development. Investment must be linked to the efficiency of capital utilization and the ability to generate further resources for reinvestment. Source: Nhan Dan