Hanoi (VNA) - The Ministry of Transport (MOT) is prioritising the rapid disbursement of public investment funds, setting its sights on ensuring the full utilisa🍨tion of allocated budgets for 2024.

With a total investment plan of over 75.5 trillion VND (2.97 billion USD), the ministry has outlined a comprehensive strategy to speed up the progress of key transport projects, particularly roads and expressways. A significant portion of the disbursed funds is focused on key expressway projects. One such project, the Quang Ngai-Hoai Nhon expressway, has made notable progress. After 22 months of construction, the project has completed over 45% of its work, with the pace of construction increasing daily. To date, the project has disbursed nearly 6.2 trillion VND of its total construction budget of 13.4 trillion VND. For 2024 alone, the project was allocated 4 trillion VND, with 2.7 trillion VND, or 66%, already disbursed. Similarly, the Ham Nghi-Vung Ang expressway project is also on a right track. With a targeted completion date of April 30, 2025, contractors are ramping up efforts by mobilising additional machinery and workers to accelerate the pace of construction. The project now boasts an average of 15 billion VND worth of work daily, and more than 100 billion VND per week. The Thang Long Project Management Unit, overseeing the Ham Nghi-Vung Ang and Bai Vọt-Ham Nghi expressways, reported the approval of additional funding, with a 977 billion VND top-up for Ham Nghi-Vung Ang and 800 billion VND for Bai Vot-Ham Nghi. By the end of October 2024, disbursements for the unit’s projects had exceeded 3.7 trillion VND, or 56% of the allocated budget. Meanwhile, the Van Phong-Nha Trang expressway, another priority project, is also on track to complete before the April 2025 deadline, with 76% of the contract value already realised. The project has deployed 1,300 workers and 800 pieces of machinery, ensuring that progress is maintained.

While projects in the northern and central regions have shown rapid progress, those in the South have encountered some hurdles. The Can Tho-Ca Mau expressway, for instance, is behind schedule, having completed only 46% of its target, 11% short of its planned rate. The delay is largely due to a shortage of sand, as local sand mines do not provide enough to meet demand. The project requires 76,000 cubic metres of sand per day, yet only 50,000 cubic metres are being produced. To resolve this, the Project Management Unit has been working with local authorities in five southern provinces to secure the necessary materials, aiming to meet its deadlines of load testing by December 2024 and project completion by December 2025. As of September 2024, the MoT had been allocated 71.3 trillion VND of its investment plan, and additional 1.24 trillion VND sourced from the Government’s increased budget revenue for 2022. By the end of October, the ministry had disbursed 47.75 trillion VND, or 63% of the total target. Most of these funds have gone to the National Expressway Project Phase 1 (2021-2025), with nearly 26.5 trillion VND.

To ensure full disbursement by the end of the year, the ministry has made it a priority to tie the performance of project managers and contractors to the completion of disbursement goals. It is closely reviewing disbursement plans for each project, ensuring that each project’s management unit is held accountable. Additionally, they are making use of favourable weather conditions, coordinating with local authorities for land clearance and resettlement, and increase workforce to ensure that all processes are in place for prompt payment and project completion. By adjusting funds and ensuring strict quality control, the ministry aims not only to meet financial targets but also to uphold safety standards and maintain environmental integrity during construction./.