Impatient with the speed of disbursed public investment capital

Impatient with the speed of disbursed public investment capital

The result of disbursement is low

According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, from the first months of the year, the Government and the Prime Minister directed ministries, sectors and localities to determine promoting the disbursement of public investment capital as a key political task, concentrating on the implementation of measures to promote the disbursement of capital, creating motivation for economic growth in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic.

As a result, the disbursement of public investment capital in the first six months of the year had some positive changes, higher than the same period in 2019. However, the result of disbursement was still low compared to the requirements, only 33.1% of the plan.

To achieve the goal of disbursing all the capital planned in 2020, contributing to supporting economic growth, the Ministry of Planning and Investment requested ministries, sectors and localities implement solutions drastically and synchronously and promptly remove obstacles and difficulties, clearing congestion points to accelerate disbursement of investment capital.

The heads of ministries, central agencies and localities should take full responsibility in front of the Government and the Prime Minister for failing to ensure the implementation schedule and disbursement of investment capital at ministries and central agencies and their locality.

At the same time, implementing Resolution No. 84/NQ-CP of the Government, the Ministry of Planning and Investment worked with ministries, central agencies and localities to check and review the disbursement progress of the projects from July 2020 to promptly propose the Prime Minister adjust the public investment plan of central budget capital in 2020 among ministries, central agencies and localities in the total central budget capital in 2020 which has been decided by the National Assembly.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment also asked ministries, ministerial-level agencies and localities to review and promptly adjust the public investment plan in 2020 from a slow disbursement project to a project with fast disbursement schedule to ensure full disbursement of public investment plan for 2020.

Many units conduct self-review and return capital

According to Ministry of Planning and Investment, total public investment capital allocated from the State budget in 2020 was nearly VND 700,000 billion. This amount of capital included VND 470,600 billion in the budget estimate and VND 225,200 billion that was transferred from the capital of 2019. Thus, public investment capital that needed to be disbursed in 2020 was more than two times the actual disbursed capital in 2019 (more than VND 300,000 billion).

Regarding the proposal for capital transfer of ministries, sectors and localities that had a slow rate of disbursement to ministries, sectors and localities that performed well in August and had been approved by the Prime Minister, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong said, according to the General Department of Statistics, a 1% increase in the disbursement of public investment capital would increase GDP by 0.067%.

In 2019, public investment disbursement reached 80%, if this year it reached 84%, it would mean the disbursement of public investment capital would increase by 4%, then GDP would increase by 0.28%. Believing this is a growth dynamic that the Government has in hand, Tran Quoc Phuong emphasised that quick disbursement would boost GDP.

“The Prime Minister has been assigned by the National Assembly to transfer capital from ministries, sectors and localities that had a low rate of disbursement to ministries, branches and localities that performed better. This aims to promote disbursement and efficient use of capital. We would supervise stagnant places, low disbursement and report to the Prime Minister. However, this has to go through a step of checking,” Phuong said.

Many units have conducted self-review. After reviewing, knowing they could not complete the disbursement target, those units have returned hundreds of VND billion. On the other hand, the unit that could disburse more than the allocated capital, the Ministry of Planning and Investment would propose the Prime Minister for adjustment and supplement.

The Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment affirmed that to disburse quickly and effectively, the key point was the dynamism and drasticness of the leaders of each ministry, sector and locality. If the head of the unit closely supervises, the disbursement of public investment would achieve high efficiency.