According to Regulation No. 222-QD/TW (the Regulation), a provincial or municipal political school is a public service entity under the authority of the provincial or municipal Party committee. It operates under the direct, comprehensive, and continuous leadership and guidance of the Standing Committee of the provincial or municipal Party committee; it is subject to the guidance and unified management of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, as well as the guidance of other competent authorities in accordance with established regulations.
The provincial or municipal political school is tasked with the training and professional development of leadership and management personnel within the political system at the provincial and commune levels; this includes officials, civil servants, public employees, and staff working in mass organisations that have been assigned specific responsibilities by the Party and the State at the local level, in line with the decentralised framework for training and development. The school is authorised to issue diplomas, certificates, and other credentials in accordance with the regulations and guidelines provided by competent authorities.
Provincial and municipal political schools are tasked with training and fostering leadership and management personnel for agencies and units under provincial and commune-level Party committees and administrations, in accordance with established decentralisation frameworks. They provide training for professional and technical staff within Party organisations, government bodies, the Fatherland Front, and socio-political organisations.
Furthermore, they train civil servants, public employees, and other designated groups based on the curricula, standards, target audiences, and decentralisation mandates established by competent authorities. This includes providing intermediate-level political theory training as stipulated by the Central authorities, as well as offering training in state management knowledge and skills for civil servants and public employees in leadership or management positions at the division level (or equivalent).
Additionally, these schools provide training and updates on leadership, governance, administration, and the execution of official duties—covering areas such as the implementation of decentralisation and delegation of authority, digital transformation, the application of science and technology, and specialised professional skills tailored to the requirements of specific job titles and positions.
These institutions also provide instruction on Marxism-Leninism, Ho Chi Minh Thought, the viewpoints, guidelines, and policies of the Party, and the laws and policies of the State. They coordinate the dissemination of information regarding current events, as well as the policies and directives of both the Central and local authorities, and participate in the professional training of Party lecturers and propagandists.
Moreover, they conduct theoretical research and summarise practical experiences concerning the application of Marxism-Leninism, Ho Chi Minh Thought, and the Party’s viewpoints and guidelines at the local level.
This includes research on Party building, the development of the political system, the organisation and operation of local governments, the implementation of decentralisation and the delegation of authority, and the execution of resolutions from provincial or municipal Party congresses, as well as strategic resolutions issued by the Central authorities for implementation at the local level.
Research findings shall serve teaching and learning activities, while providing scientific arguments and practical foundations to support the leadership and direction of the Provincial or Municipal Party Committee.
Institutions shall participate in research and the synthesis of practical experience to support the drafting of documents for provincial or municipal Party congresses; they shall also assist in conducting interim and final reviews of the implementation of Party congress resolutions and other strategic local resolutions, as assigned by the Standing Committee of the Provincial or Municipal Party Committee.
Furthermore, they shall contribute to safeguarding the Party’s ideological foundation and countering erroneous or hostile viewpoints—integrating these efforts with the teaching of political theory—as directed by competent authorities. They are responsible for developing comprehensive multi-year and annual scientific research programs, subject to approval by the Standing Committee of the Provincial or Municipal Party Committee.
They shall also execute research projects, surveys, and practical assessments commissioned or assigned by the Provincial or Municipal Party Committee or its Standing Committee. Additionally, they may engage in international cooperation regarding training, professional development, and scientific research, in accordance with the policies, decentralisation frameworks, and regulations established by competent authorities.
The regulations specify that, based on their functions, assigned tasks, authorised staffing levels, the scale of training and professional development, and local characteristics, the Standing Committee of the Provincial or Municipal Party Committee may authorise the establishment of no more than five specialised departments or divisions.
The recommended organisational structure includes: a Department of Foundational Theory; a Department of Party Building; a Department of State and Law; a Division for the Management of Training, Professional Development, and Scientific Research; and a Division for Organisation, Administration, and Digital Transformation.
The operational funding for the political school shall be provided by the local budget in accordance with regulations, with the institution also permitted to utilise other legally sourced funds. Provincial and municipal political schools are Tier I budgetary units within the provincial or municipal budget…
Regulation No. 222-QĐ/TW shall take effect on October 6, 2026, and shall supersede Regulation No. 393-QĐ/TW, dated January 5, 2026, issued by the Secretariat regarding the functions, tasks, and organisational structure of provincial and municipal political schools, as well as Regulation No. 360-QĐ/TW, dated August 29, 2025, issued by the Secretariat regarding the functions, tasks, and organisational structure of political centres in communes, wards, and special administrative-economic units.
