Vietnam: Classification of administrative units according to current regulations

According to Article 2 of the Law on Local Government Organization 2015 of Vietnam, administrative units of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam shall include:

- Municipalities and provinces (hereinafter referred to as province or provincial level);

- Suburban, urban districts and provincial cities, and municipality-controlled cities (hereinafter referred to as district or district level);

- Communes, wards or commune-level towns (hereinafter referred to as commune or communal level);

- Special administrative – economic units.

According to Article 3 of the Law on Local Government Organization 2015 of Vietnam, classification of administrative units serves as a basis for drawing up socio-economic developmental plans and strategies; establishing the mechanism, system and policies for officials and public servants working at local governments in conformity with each type of administrative unit.

Thus, classification of administrative units should be based on criteria such as population scale, natural area, the number of affiliated administrative units, socio-economic development level and particular elements of each administrative unit at rural, urban areas and islands.

Administrative units shall be classified as follows:

- Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city are special-grade province-level administrative units; the rest of administrative units shall be categorized into three grades: grade I, grade II and grade III;

- District-level administrative units shall be categorized into three grades: grade I, grade II and grade III;

- Commune-level administrative units shall be categorized into three grades: grade I, grade II and grade III.

Besides, this Law has also specified principles of organization and operation of local governments, to be specific:

- Comply with the Constitutions and laws, and govern society by laws; adhere to the democratic concentration principle.

- Be modern, transparent, and intended for the people, and be subject to the people's supervision.

- The People’s Council shall perform their tasks through the process of meeting and according to the majority rule.

- The People’s Committee shall operate according to the collective system in which the People's Committee is combined with the responsibilities of the President of the People’s Committee.

The Law on Local Government Organization 2015 of Vietnam comes into force on January 01, 2016.

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