Mr Phuc said the changes will focus on refashioning the management of funds in such a way that the Government can check corruption and squander in projects using State and official development assistance (ODA) funds.

They will spell out the accountability of officials managing such projects, particularly infrastructure projects, to ensure the effective use of funds as well as the quality of projects. Besides, the investment ministry has drafted a plan to make budget-sourced investments more efficient.

The plan contains a draft Law on Budget-Sourced Investment, which will be submitted by the Government to the National Assembly for approval at its year-end session.

The new law is required because current provisions governing State-funded projects are not clear about accountability on the part of officials and agencies.

The plan also envisages changing the model now in use for executing and managing public works. "The current project management units (PMUs) model needs to be changed completely," he said.

Most PMUs operating under ministries and other agencies are not directly accountable for projects they undertake, though they have tremendous authority. Once the construction of a road or bridge is completed they no longer bear responsibility.

Usually after roads are built, the PMU will hand them over to other agencies, which will use funds from other sources – about US$130 million a year – to maintain them. "This contravenes current regulations that allow each PMU to only supervise one project at a time," he said.

Mr Phuc pointed to the PMUs under the Transport Ministry as a typical example. Many of them, like PMU18, had authority exceeding many ministry departments because they supervised many expensive infrastructure works funded by the State budget and ODA.

Because of such a model, the quality of many infrastructure projects supervised by PMUs was alarmingly low. This also created opportunities for corruption and other wrongdoings.

A project investor should also supervise its construction and take care of its subsequent maintenance, especially of roads and bridges.

To adopt this method, the Road Management Department needs to restructure its sections into five or six State-owned public utility companies. They will not only be responsible for managing construction works but also for the upkeep of the assets after construction, he said.

Airport upgrade success

Mr Phuc said the new model is being applied by the Southern Airport Authority (SAA) to upgrade airports in HCM City and Can Tho in the Mekong Delta.

The Aviation Department and the SAA have complete responsibility for the investment, execution of works, and future upkeep.

The current model of State agencies checking public works and certifying their quality needs to be jettisoned as concerned agencies do not conduct such activities proficiently. One of main reasons for this is that they are not assigned specific responsibilities.

Instead, the minister said, independent, competent companies could be entrusted with checking the quality of public projects, thus ensuring objectivity.

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