“Affordable Housing Should Be Accessible, Not Relegated to Inaccessible Locations: Prime Minister”

Regarding the direction and administration of the government, 22 resolutions have been issued, along with 12 directives, decisions, and telegrams from the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister has also chaired numerous conferences, combining online and offline formats, with local businesses and authorities, implementing various drastic solutions and tasks to remove obstacles and promote the development of social housing.

On April 3, 2023, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 338/QD-TTg approving the project “Investing in the construction of at least 1 million social housing units for low-income people and industrial zone workers in the period of 2021-2030”. Accordingly, the goal is to complete at least 1 million social housing units by 2030 and strive to complete 100,000 units by 2025.

So far, according to the Ministry of Construction, there have been many positive changes. Across the country, 1,309 locations with an area of 9,737 hectares have been planned for social housing, and most localities have allocated sufficient land for social housing in favorable locations. There are currently 679 social housing projects being implemented nationwide, with a scale of 623,051 units (108 completed projects with 73,075 units and 571 projects under construction with 550,000 units). In the first five months of 2025, 22,649 apartments were completed, and 21 projects were started with a scale of 20,428 apartments.

Speaking at the conference, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh clarified that the Party and State have social and social security policies on housing. These policies ensure equal access to housing for all citizens and prioritize those in vulnerable situations.

The Prime Minister mentioned that he once heard the opinion that “my province has no industry or workers, so there is no need to develop social housing.” However, according to the Prime Minister, this reflects a limited understanding of the policy, as social housing is also intended for the poor, the disadvantaged, fresh graduates, teachers in remote areas, and border soldiers, among others. In other words, social housing is meant for those with low incomes and housing difficulties in general.

The Prime Minister evaluated that, despite difficulties, the implementation has been carried out drastically and seriously, especially by the Ministries of Construction, Agriculture and Environment, National Defense, and Public Security. He emphasized that social housing should not be located in remote areas lacking infrastructure but should have adequate transportation, utilities, and social infrastructure, including healthcare, culture, and education facilities.

However, the implementation of social housing projects still faces many difficulties and obstacles, mainly due to complex administrative procedures and policies. Therefore, following the Prime Minister’s direction at the National Conference on removing difficulties and promoting the development of social housing on March 6, 2025, the agencies proposed to the Government to suggest breakthrough mechanisms and policies to the Politburo and the National Assembly to immediately overcome difficulties and obstacles for social housing projects.

After the National Assembly issued Resolution No. 201/2025/QH15 on May 29, 2025, on some special mechanisms and policies for social housing development at the first session of the 9th National Assembly, the Government promptly issued an action program to implement the Resolution.

According to the Prime Minister, the National Assembly’s Resolution has introduced several breakthrough mechanisms and policies, such as the establishment of the National Housing Fund and the expansion of beneficiaries to include enterprises, state agencies, political organizations, and socio-political organizations. These entities can rent social housing to arrange accommodation for their employees, including industrial workers and foreign employees, creating a sense of security for them.

The Resolution also reduces and reforms administrative procedures in social housing development, such as appointing investors without bidding, eliminating the requirement for detailed planning tasks, and removing procedures for design basis appraisal, price appraisal, and construction permits. According to the Ministry of Construction, this will reduce the process by at least 350 days.

Additionally, the Resolution assigns the People’s Committees of the provinces to define the conditions for enjoying social housing policies for objects affected by the organization and rearrangement of administrative units.

Resolution No. 201/2025/QH15 has resolved the institutional bottlenecks hindering social housing development. However, to effectively implement and concretize these special mechanisms and policies, there needs to be a unified direction and leadership from the Party committees and the heads of ministries, sectors, and localities.

The Prime Minister proposed that the delegates discuss and agree on tasks and solutions to immediately implement the Resolution without delay. At the same time, it is necessary to review and evaluate the implementation of the assigned tasks by ministries, sectors, and localities, the results of social housing development in the first five months of 2025, and the next steps until the end of 2025.