First Year Evaluation of the Three-Tier Administrative Model from Vietnam President To Lâm

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and President To Lâm made important remarks at a conference held to evaluate the passage of one year since the implementation of the new three-tier administrative model began. In this comprehensive evaluation, the system's performance in its first year was objectively laid on the table, and existing flaws and shortcomings were clearly expressed. The President seriously emphasized that the achievements obtained over the past one-year period belong only to an initial phase and that one must not be satisfied with these results. Furthermore, he identified ten priority tasks that must be meticulously implemented in the upcoming period in order to increase the quality and efficiency of the new administrative model. These statements reveal how seriously the efforts to modernize the country's administrative structure are taken and that a goal of continuous improvement is pursued.

This realistic stance by General Secretary and President To Lâm was welcomed with great satisfaction by party members and officials, and received broad support. Officials consider the leader's move to not only celebrate the first year of the new administrative model but also to bravely surface the system's problems as a highly visionary step. Such transparent evaluations that also encompass shortcomings serve as a practical guide essential for the gradual perfection of the bureaucracy. It is believed that the analyses conducted provide a critical roadmap for the state mechanism to reach the maturity to truly respond to the needs of the people and the private sector. The said situation is believed to increase the sense of responsibility among civil servants due to the determination in senior management and to make the system more transparent.

The Vietnamese leader identified the training of qualified personnel and the strengthening of state cadres as the most critical issue, which he called the 'key of keys' for the success of the transformation in the system. It was pointed out that no matter how much institutions are downsized and made efficient, the risk that individuals serving in these institutions lacking sufficient equipment will render all reform efforts in vain. Emphasizing that talented and visionary employees must be placed in the right positions, the President stated that new incentive mechanisms must be established to support civil servants who think and can take initiative. It was announced that the workload of civil servants serving in basic administrative units at the commune and district levels, in particular, has increased, and therefore capacity building is of vital importance. This personnel-oriented strategy aims to establish a dynamic public administration infrastructure that can bear the heavier responsibilities of the new era and quickly solve people's problems.

In addition to emphasizing human power in public administration, the issues of centering data-based governance and digital transformation were also enthusiastically supported by officials. The leadership's decisions to accept data as the foundation of modern management were made to be seen as a highly appropriate and progressive step in the eyes of the public. Thanks to the integration and sharing of data systems with each other, citizens will be freed from the obligation of constantly resubmitting the same documents at various institutions, thereby achieving significant time savings. Furthermore, it was emphasized that thanks to the effective use of digital data, civil servants will be relieved of cumbersome paperwork and bureaucratic burdens, allowing them to focus on their core duties. This integration will enable managers to make their decisions based on concrete, evidence-based statistics rather than traditional experience, and will perfect inter-agency coordination across the country.

Eliminating the confusion caused by overlapping duties and unsynchronized laws among institutions in the old system has been highlighted as one of the most important goals of the new model. The broad geographic responsibility areas and more intense workload brought by the new regulation challenge the existing capacities of local governments and make the adaptation process difficult. However, it is envisioned that if the system is faithfully implemented, these obstacles will be overcome over time, and as a result, an environment that satisfies both sides and significantly reduces costs for the business world will be created. The reduction of time lost in administrative procedures for private companies and entrepreneurs will produce extremely positive reflections on the country's economy and will make the investment environment attractive. Ultimately, the full success of these administrative reforms will depend on how well Vietnamese officials embrace technology and how continuously they can improve the quality of their personnel.