HCMC – Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province has disbursed only a quarter of its public investment funds allocated for 2024 in the first half of the year, according to the provincial Department of Planning and Investment.
The province’s total public investment for 2024 is over VND20.6 trillion, which includes VND1.7 trillion for centrally-run projects, VND13.1 trillion for provincial-level projects, and VND5.8 trillion for district-level projects.
To date, VND19.6 trillion has been allocated, representing 95.19% of the total budget planned for the province. However, only VND4.9 trillion has been disbursed so far, accounting for 24.81% of the plan. Higher disbursement rates were observed in districts such as Chau Duc (48.84%), Long Dien (36%), and Xuyen Moc (36.3%).
In contrast, several major project owners reported low disbursement rates. These include Phu My Town, Con Dao District, and various project management boards specializing in the civil, industrial, and transportation sectors, as well as the Cai Mep-Thi Vai port management board.
In 2024, the province plans to start work on 24 new projects with a total cost of nearly VND5.5 trillion. The current disbursement rate for these projects is 8.77%. Seven projects have started construction, one is in the bidding process, and 16 are undergoing investment procedures before bidding and construction can begin.
According to Le Ngoc Linh, director of the Ba Ria-Vung Tau Department of Planning and Investment, the slow disbursement is due to difficulties in land clearance and compensation, foot-dragging investment procedures, and legal conformity.
Coordination between investors and authorities has been weak, and some investors have not been proactive. Additionally, contractor execution capabilities are limited, and project preparation quality has been inadequate.
Le Ngoc Khanh, vice chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, urged investors and local authorities to expedite land clearance and project execution to meet deadlines. A task force has been established to monitor and provide regular reports on the disbursement progress.
