Overview of the conference.
On December 29, speakers at Hanoi's 2025 review and 2026 task-setting conference offered extensive input on key and priority areas.
Discussions focused on renewing leadership and management methods, personnel organization, planning and land management, site clearance, achieving double-digit economic growth, administrative reform, digital transformation, agricultural and rural development and public reception and complaint handling.
Speaking at the conference, Standing member of the Hanoi Party Committee and Head of the Hanoi Party Committee's Organization Commission Ha Minh Hai said the Party-building and organizational sector in 2025 provide timely and accurate advice on major policies.
The sector handled a large volume of complex and unprecedented tasks, contributing significantly to the success of Party congresses at all levels and the operation of the two-tier local government model.
For 2026, Hai said the sector will implement Party Congress resolutions under the principle of "clear goals, clear tasks, clear outcomes, clear effectiveness and clear accountability" while further refining and operating the two-tier local government model.
The sector will also strongly renew personnel work, finalize job positions and apply the principle of "selecting the right person for the job and evaluating by measurable results", along with "entry and exit, promotion and demotion", stronger power control, improved grassroots Party organizations and a stronger political foundation.
It will accelerate digital transformation and administrative reform in Party organization work, build shared data platforms, gradually develop a digital twin of Hanoi and apply artificial intelligence and data analytics to support management and decision-making.
Hai emphasized that 2026 must mark a shift from "doing many tasks" to "delivering results", from "reporting" to "measurement" and from "procedures" to "execution to the end".
Nguyen Thanh Liem, Secretary of the Quang Minh Commune Party Committee and Chairman of the commune People's Council, proposed that the city further decentralize authority to communes, especially in land-use rights auctions, to generate budget revenue and reinvest in local socio-economic development.
He also urged the city to speed up legal procedures for 11 of 29 delayed projects and consider reclaiming 13 projects from investors with weak capacity or no engagement with local authorities.
Standing member of the Hanoi Party Committee and Head of the Hanoi Party Committee's Organization Commission Ha Minh Hai.
Liem asked the city to reduce approval procedures related to public investment at the Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Environment, including site clearance boundaries, environmental impact assessments and land allocation.
According to Nguyen Trong Ky Anh, Director of the Hanoi Department of Planning and Architecture, the city must refine planning mindset and methods to effectively implement the capital's 100-year master plan vision.
Hanoi should also build data infrastructure and digital platforms for planning management, prioritize infrastructure development, ensure synchronized and smart growth and improve institutions for flexible and dynamic planning.
Nguyen Xuan Dai, Director of the Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Environment, said the city is implementing 1,515 projects covering about 14,497 hectares, with around 5,895 hectares still pending site clearance.
He noted that prolonged delays largely stem from site clearance challenges, which remain one of the most difficult stages of project implementation.
However, he pointed to positive examples in site clearance for major projects such as Ring Road 4 of the Capital Region, Ring Road 1 (Hoang Cau–Voi Phuc section) and seven Red River bridge projects.
Dai stressed that effective site clearance requires local authorities to treat it as a continuous political task, with close coordination from specialized departments.
Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Finance Nguyen Xuan Sang said strengthening discipline and efficiency in public investment management serves as a key solution to achieving 11% growth.
From the start of the year, Hanoi must treat public investment disbursement as a core political task and a driver to attract private investment, aiming to fully disburse the assigned capital plan of VND126 trillion (US$4.8 billion) before September 30, 2026.
Delegates attend the conference.
Cu Ngoc Trang, Director of the Hanoi Public Administration Service Center, said Hanoi has successfully operated the two-tier local government model smoothly since July 1, 2025.
So far, authorities have delegated 456 administrative procedures and in December 2025 the center and departments proposed further decentralization for 243 additional procedures for 2026 and beyond.
Trang emphasized that 2026 marks the phase when the model must deepen to truly bring government closer to the people, requiring continued decentralization and authorization.
He set a target that by December 2026, the city will retain no more than 20% of administrative procedures at the city level, transferring the remainder to commune level with adequate resources, while the city focuses on state management and system-wide facilitation.