Vietnam Party discusses system streamlining, resumption of nuclear power project

Vietnam's Party Central Committee gathered on Monday to discuss the streamlining of the political system and personnel issues.

Addressing the meeting, Party General Secretary To Lam pointed out that Resolution 18 of the 12th Party Central Committee on restructuring and streamlining the apparatus of the political system has yielded initial successes.

However, it has yet to meet expectations, with agencies at many levels seeing lingering overlapping functions and unclear authorizations, leading to low effectiveness and efficiency.

The Party chief said the continued reorganization of the political system is an urgent task, and the Politburo, the de facto highest decision-making body in the country, has reckoned that this task needs to be done swiftly before the upcoming 14th Party Congress, set to take place in early 2026.

The meeting also discussed personnel issues, proposing nominees for the posts of Minister of Finance, Minister of Transport, General Secretary of the National Assembly and Chairman of the National Assembly Office.

The National Assembly, the country’s highest legislative body, is scheduled to hold private sessions to discuss personnel matters on Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning.

The plan to restart the nuclear power project in the central province of Ninh Thuan was also discussed at the Party Central Committee meeting. Party General Secretary Lam stressed the need to move ahead in national energy infrastructure development to spur socio-economic growth.

Noting that power shortages are apparent even when the Power Development Plan VIII (PDP VIII) materializes, Lam said the project “is extremely vital to prepare for the future.”

In 2005, the Party Central Committee greenlighted a plan to build two nuclear power plants in Ninh Thuan province. Four years later, the National Assembly approved such a plan with an initial investment of VND200 trillion ($7.9 billion at the current forex rate).

In November 2016, the parliament decided to halt the project, citing safety, funding, and technology reasons.