Minister Tran Hong Minh: No room for laxity in public investment disbursement

On September 11, Minister of Construction Tran Hong Minh chaired a meeting to review construction progress and public investment disbursement, as well as the management of construction materials, construction norms and unit prices, and the settlement of completed projects. 

Minister of Construction Tran Hong Minh chairs the meeting on project progress and public investment disbursement.

Acknowledging the efforts of relevant agencies and units, Minister Tran Hong Minh noted that construction progress and public investment disbursement remained slower than required.

While some difficulties stemmed from objective factors such as site clearance and construction materials, delays at certain projects were also attributable to a lack of determination by some units. 

Emphasizing that public investment disbursement is a key task, the Minister asked project owners and project management boards to seriously review shortcomings within their areas of responsibility.

He stressed that objective difficulties must not be used as a reason to delay project implementation or disbursement, adding that actual construction progress and disbursement value should serve as key measures of work performance. 

"Project owners and project management boards must revise their implementation schedules, update construction and disbursement plans on a weekly basis, and clearly identify critical paths and bottlenecks," the Minister said.

He also instructed them to proactively remove obstacles and direct contractors to organize construction in three shifts and four crews, with a focus on completing high-value work items. 

"For completed work that has yet to be paid for, project owners must urgently review and resolve outstanding issues and complete payment documentation by September 25," he said.

Contractors that are slow to submit the required documents must be dealt with decisively, he added, stressing the need to bring disbursement rates to at least the national average as soon as possible. 

The Minister also stressed that projects scheduled for completion in 2026 must not be postponed, prolonged or have their schedules adjusted without objective and legitimate reasons.