The National Assembly, during its first extraordinary session, on August 24 passed a resolution on special mechanisms and policies to address difficulties and obstacles for projects and works serving the APEC 2027 Summit in the Phu Quoc Special Zone, in southern An Giang Province.
The resolution will take effect from September 1, 2026.
Before the National Assembly voted, authorized by the Prime Minister, Minister of Finance Ngo Van Tuan presented the Government's report on explaining, absorbing, and revising the draft resolution.
According to the Minister, following the conclusions of the National Assembly Standing Committee and absorbing the opinions of National Assembly deputies, the Government has directed the review and completion of the draft resolution, clarifying the scope of projects and works to which the special mechanism applies; the mechanism for inspection, supervision, and post-inspection; as well as the responsibilities of the Government, ministries, sectors, and An Giang Province in the implementation process.
Special mechanism applies only within scope, no precedent set
One of the important contents clarified is the scope of application of the resolution. Accordingly, the special mechanisms and policies apply to projects and works that have been organized, implemented, and constructed from March 2025 to before May 18, 2026.
This scope includes projects listed in the Prime Minister's Decision No. 948; works and items under the BT project payment for investors implementing the APEC Conference Center project; and activities of mineral exploitation, recovery, waste disposal, and reception serving the aforementioned projects and works.
According to Minister Ngo Van Tuan, this regulation aims to specifically and fully determine the scope of projects and works to which the special mechanisms and policies apply and to address obstacles according to the directives of competent authorities. Therefore, the Government proposes not to issue a separate project list attached to the resolution.
However, following the opinions of National Assembly deputies, the Government has directed a full review of projects and works within the scope of application and reported to the National Assembly in Report No. 622.
Based on this, the Government, ministries, sectors, and the People's Committee of An Giang Province are responsible for monitoring, inspecting, and auditing the implementation process, ensuring that the resolution is only applied to projects and works within the scope approved by competent authorities.
The Minister of Finance emphasized the absolute requirement not to expand the scope of application or set a precedent in handling similar cases. The implementation must be associated with the policy of decentralization, delegation, and the spirit of "local decision, local implementation, local responsibility."
Shift from pre-inspection to post-inspection, but no lax management
Another issue of concern to National Assembly deputies is the mechanism for inspection, supervision, and post-inspection of projects and works benefiting from the special mechanism.
In response to this concern, the Government has revised the draft to include a mechanism for control and coordination between An Giang Province and ministries and sectors in handling waste disposal, waste reception arising during construction; mineral recovery and exploitation; and organizing appraisal and acceptance of projects and works.
The goal is to ensure environmental safety, fire prevention, labor safety, and the interests of the State during the implementation of projects serving APEC 2027.
According to Minister Ngo Van Tuan, the application of the special mechanism to exempt or reduce certain procedures is essentially a shift from pre-inspection to post-inspection, not equivalent to ignoring or relaxing management.
These mechanisms are only applied when fully meeting strict conditions and criteria and do not alter or exempt the obligations of investors, contractors, and developers under current legal regulations.
The draft resolution has also been revised to clarify the responsibilities of the Government, ministries, sectors, and the People's Committee of An Giang Province in implementation.
The delineation of responsibilities must be consistent with the functions, tasks, and authority of each agency according to the Law on Government Organization and the Law on Local Government Organization; at the same time, it clearly reflects the responsibility of the Government and central agencies in coordinating and accompanying An Giang Province to promptly resolve difficulties and obstacles arising during the implementation of projects serving APEC 2027.
Regarding the proposal to supplement a mechanism for handling obstacles related to construction norms and unit prices, the Minister of Finance stated that during the completion of the draft resolution, the People's Committee of An Giang Province and investors reported to the National Assembly and the Government about some difficulties in applying construction norms and unit prices for projects and works serving the APEC 2027 Summit.
However, the Government recognizes that these are new issues that have arisen, which the People's Committee of An Giang Province had not previously reported during the resolution's development process. Therefore, there is currently insufficient basis to comprehensively evaluate and report to competent authorities for consideration of handling policies.
According to the Government, after the resolution is issued, based on Clause 3, Article 11, the Government will direct the People's Committee of An Giang Province and relevant agencies to review and fully assess the obstacles related to construction norms and unit prices, thereby proposing appropriate handling solutions according to the right authority, order, and procedures.
The National Assembly's approval of the resolution creates a legal basis to address difficulties and obstacles arising during the implementation of projects and works serving the APEC 2027 Summit in Phu Quoc, while also setting requirements for strict control of the scope of application, strengthening post-inspection, and clearly defining the responsibilities of each agency in the implementation process.
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