Hanoi is pushing for the construction of key transport projects with high spillover effects to accelerate the disbursement of public funds.

Hanoi's metro line Cat Linh - Ha Dong. Photo: Khanh Huy/The Hanoi Times

With public investment seen as a key measure to boost socio-economic recovery, Hanoi had set up a task force specialized in speeding up public investment in late 2021, which has been essential in helping the city’s disbursement rate above the national average.

In the first quarter, Dong Da District posted a disbursement rate of 72.1% of the year’s target, while those of Ba Dinh, Tay Ho, Thanh Oai, and My Duc had the rate from 22-44%.

As of present, Hanoi is working with Government agencies to accelerate the construction of key projects, including the Vinh Tuy Bridge Phase 2, Le Van Luong underground tunnel, and Ring road No.3, and the upgrade of sporting infrastructure for the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31).

Meanwhile, the metro line section Nhon – Hanoi station with a length of 12.5 kilometers and investment capital of VND33 trillion ($1.42 billion), is scheduled to complete in 2022 as 75% of the work volume has been completed.

The authorities expected to complete the Vinh Tuy Bridge phase 2 before June 30 to avoid the rainy season. The project with an investment capital of VND2.5 trillion ($108 million) and a length of 3.5 kilometers, is scheduled to complete in mid-2023.

Once completed, the Vinh Tuy Bridge phase 2 would connect with the Ring road No.2 and form a complete transport network from Hanoi’s center to the city’s north and northeast, in turn relieving pressure on the traffic in Thanh Tri Bridge and Ring road No.3.

At the meeting in the first quarter, Hanoi’s authorities target to reach 16% of the disbursement target by the end of April and 100% by the year-end.

With nearly 60% of the undisbursed amount, Hanoi is calling for contractors and localities to speed up the construction progress but with high quality and efficiency.

A report from the Ministry of Planning and Investment attributed site clearance as a key obstacle in pushing for public investment.

“A thorough preparation for site clearance is essential in ensuring the completion of public projects as scheduled,” noted the ministry.

Bearing this in mind, the Hanoi People’s Committee has concentrated on this issue in public projects and sees the progress as the criteria to assess the performance of each unit.

In this case, the authorities would consider allocating funds from projects with slow disbursement progress to those of higher pace.

Hanoi is expected to allocate VND51.07 trillion (US$2.2 billion) for public investment in 2022, of which VND510 billion ($22.1 million) would be used for the payment of debts and interest rates.

For the 2021-2025 period, the city sets to earmark VND650 trillion ($28.4 billion) for the 2021-2025 public investment plan.

The priority order for investment would be aligned with the vision for the development of the transport sector and socio-economic infrastructure, namely the ring road 2.5, ring road 3, ring-road 3.5, ring road 4; major bridge crossing the river (Vinh Tuy bridge Phase 2, Thuong Cat bridge); inter-provincial roads (national road 6, upgrading national road 32, national road 1A, 21B); and urban railway projects.