The findings were presented and discussed at a seminar co-organised by the HCMA and the UN Development Programme on May 12 in Ha Noi.
The study also confirmed that the new model would help streamline the administrative apparatus and improve the efficiency of public service delivery.
At the same time, the findings documented initial experiences from the model’s implementation and identified key issues requiring urgent attention during the 2026–2031 period.
Addressing the seminar, Associate Professor Nguyen Manh Hung, Deputy Director of the HCMA, stressed that a good system is not one that never encounters obstacles, but one that identifies problems early, responds swiftly, corrects mistakes promptly, and does not allow citizens to pay the price for poor coordination.
He added that good public services are not merely those that follow procedures correctly, but those that deliver stable, reliable, and accessible outcomes that meet citizens’ needs.
The study also documented the experiences of citizens, officials, and civil servants following the streamlining of the administrative apparatus and the elimination of intermediate administrative tiers.
Although the majority of survey participants welcomed the reform, many reported facing considerable difficulties accessing public services during the initial phase of the two-tier model, particularly at commune level, as local administrations adapted to their new responsibilities.
At present, for administrative procedures handled by commune-level authorities, many citizens still have to make multiple trips, visit several service windows, or deal with numerous officials before completing a procedure, rather than being served by a genuine one-stop-shop.
This reality highlights the importance of improving the responsiveness and service-oriented mindset of commune-level civil servants.
The difficulties reported by some citizens also indicate the need to further strengthen service capacity and systemic support in order to improve the effectiveness of local public service delivery.
Survey results on access to the National Public Service Portal showed that nearly 22% of respondents had used the platform since July 1, 2025. However, as many as 27% of users reported difficulties using the platform, while 34% raised concerns about personal data security.
These figures indicate the need to continue improving online public services with a user-centred approach, as part of the broader roadmap for expanding digital public services.
The survey findings also underscored the urgent need to improve the inclusivity of digital public services, as only 6.4% of persons with disabilities reported having used the National Public Service Portal since the consolidation of 63 provincial-level public service portals into a unified national platform.
The findings demonstrate the importance of combining digital services with direct support mechanisms, in fulfilment of the commitment to a service-oriented and inclusive public administration.
In addition, a number of challenges were identified in key public services such as healthcare and primary education.
Survey results showed that many people opted to bypass local health stations and seek treatment directly at provincial-level hospitals due to concerns over service quality.
In public primary education, overcrowded classrooms and insufficient infrastructure to support students with disabilities remain pressing challenges requiring urgent attention.
At the same time, case studies conducted in the provinces of Bac Ninh and Hung Yen indicated that, in order to optimise the two-tier local government model, it is necessary to ensure alignment among mechanisms, policies, human resources, technical infrastructure, and financial-budgetary arrangements.
Delegation and decentralisation can only be truly effective when implementation capacity at the grassroots level is strengthened commensurate with newly delegated authority.
During discussions at the seminar, experts recommended integrating short-term administrative adjustments with longer-term efforts to build a sustainable public governance system, with a focus on sound budget allocation, capacity building for the public-service workforce, particularly at commune level, and continued investment in upgrading national and local digital infrastructure.
