Little headway in capital’s urban-suburban move

VietNamNet Bridge – A “terrible waste” of resources is taking place as a grand plan to shift Government offices, schools and hospitals to suburban enclaves in the capital city fails to materialise, almost three years on.

A view of FPT University in Hoa Lac University Town in the western district of Thach That. — Photo dantri.com.vn

Under an official decision issued in 2015 to reduce pressure on Hanoi’s public infrastructure, Government agencies, public schools, hospitals and manufacturing facilities would be moved to the suburbs.

With the plan struggling to get off the paper, population density and traffic congestion in the city has worsened, local reports say.

With 96 universities and colleges, Hanoi hosts about 40 per cent of Vietnamese tertiary students. The Hoa Lac University Town in the western district of Thach That was expected to become the common home of institutes under the Viet Nam National University, Hanoi (VNU).

The VND7.2 trillion (US$317 million plus) project was planned to be completed in 2015. However, very little implementation has happened.

The Duc Tu – Mai Lam University Cluster Area in Dong Anh District, approved in 2014, has been postponed due to financial issues.

The Ha Noi College of Pedagody and Ha Noi Community College in Cau Giay District, which should have moved to the above-mentioned area, are now asking for funds from the city to reconstruct their present facilities.

The Chuc Son University Cluster Area in Chuong My District is facing a similar problem because a lot of colleges are reluctant to move there.

Some universities have been active in their compliance with the government’s decision even before it was issued.

Nguyen Duc Tinh, deputy director of the Trade Union University in Dong Da District, said they have been allowed to build another campus in Hung Yen Province’s Yen My District.

The project has been implemented for six years with investment allocated from the State budget and other resources. In 2018, when its first phase will complete, there will be a bus connecting the two campuses.

“By then, we will only run advanced training courses for Trade Union’s officers at the old campus,” Tinh said.  

Pham Duc Vinh, director of the Ha Noi Industrial Vocational College in Dong Da District, said he highly appreciated the decision to move universities and colleges to the suburbs.

He said his institution’s present 20,000sq.m facility was too small to meet the requirements of a modern environment to study in. However, the college has asked that it maintains a part of its old campus as the admissions office.

Should hospitals move?

Although the city has invested in constructing new facilities, several hospitals have been reluctant to move outside the urban area.

The National Cancer Hospital (K Hospital) and National Hospital of Endocrinology (NHE) are operating in Thanh Tri District, but they have not still handed over their old buildings to the city.

To address overcrowding in centrally-administered hospitals including Viet-Duc and Bach Mai, the government has invested in building new branches in Ha Nam Province.

Other hospitals like the Central Eye Hospital or the National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology have had plans to construct new facilities, have are yet to make a detailed proposal.

According to the Government plan, medical facilities are to be set up in the suburban districts of Long Bien, Hoa Lac, Soc Son, Phu Xuyen and Son Tay. But nothing has happened in this regard yet.

Tran Ngoc Luong, director of NHE, said that it was the first public hospital to apply for a bank loan of VND500 billion (US$22 million) to build its second branch in Thanh Tri District’s Tu Hiep Commune.

While two-thirds of inpatients are now receiving modern care and treatment in the new facility, others still stay at the old hospital due to its favourable location.

In April, 2014, the K Hospital launched three branches on Quan Su, Tam Hiep and Tan Trieu streets. In the near future, it is expected that the hospital on Quan Su Street becomes the National Cancer Research Institution under the K Hospital.

However, several city officials are questioning the policy to move hospitals.

Nguyen Duc Chung, Chairman of the Ha Noi People’s Committee, said he was worried about the impact of moving on public healthcare quality.

“A hospital has to be located within 15 minutes reach of a residential area. Moreover, there has to be one hospital for every 25,000 to 30,000 citizens. Therefore, the city is reconsidering some plans to make sure that both people and medical facilities can benefit,” he said.

Tran Binh Giang, director of the Viet-Duc Hospital, stressed the significance of hospital expansion.

“We will continue operating the old hospital even after the new branch in Ha Nam Province opens. The hospital will also find ways to distribute patients to reduce pressure on surroundings,” he said.

Nguyen Dinh Hung, director of the Saint Paul Hospital, said urban hospitals were necessary to guarantee residents’ healthcare. He said special medical facilities like mental hospitals and rehabilitation centres should be located in the suburbs with larger areas.

Ministries stay put

Despite investing in spacious headquarters in the suburbs, several ministries have not yet handed over their old offices to the government, delaying planned infrastructure upgrades.

In 2013 and 2016, the Ha Noi People’s Committee decided to save 55ha in a new urban area south of the Thang Long Avenue and 20ha in the Starlake urban area, west of the West Lake for 13 ministries including Ministry of Planning and Investment, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and Ministry of Industry and Trade to build their offices.

Some of these ministries have already transferred to the new areas, but their old headquarters have not been returned to the city.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, for example, is using its old headquarters on Nguyen Chi Thanh Street as the office of its Administration of Seas and Islands. Meanwhile, the erstwhile HQ of the Home Affairs Ministry is now its Officers Training School.

Representatives of the two ministries told the Kinh te và Do Thi (Economy and Urban) newspaper that they did not know what the city planned to do with their old headquarters.

Nguyen Tan Chinh, head of the Public Assets Management Administration, said that it would tighten management of public constructions in 2018, including withdrawing and rearranging old offices for different purposes.

Pham Hong Ha, Construction minister, said that the ministry then was considering all potential plans to meet requirements of governmental agencies and make budget allocations.

“We encourage ministries to source investment from diverse sources to construct their new headquarters,” he said.

The VND17 trillion ($750 million) budget proposed by the Finance Ministry for moving 13 ministries’ headquarters to the suburbs can be raised when bids on their old office buildings are conducted transparently and effectively, the Kinh te và Do Thi reported. 

Source: VNS