Đức Nhân and Huỳnh Kha wrote this Vietnamese article, published in Luat Khoa Magazine on March 1, 2025. Jason Nguyen
Key Events * European Union Pressures Vietnam Over Human Rights Violations at UN Meeting * Vietnam Moves to Amend the Constitution and
Lam Hồng wrote this Vietnamese op-ed, published in Luat Khoa Magazine on January 3, 2025. Jason Nguyen translated it into
Đức Nhân and Huỳnh Kha wrote this Vietnamese article, published in Luat Khoa Magazine on March 1, 2025. Jason Nguyen translated it into English for The Vietnamese Magazine.
By March 2025, Vietnam had spent around three months reorganizing and streamlining its political system and institutions. This has led to various changes in the structure and functions of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), the government, and the National Assembly.
The CPV introduced the principle of "trying to build while running" as a guiding motto during the restructuring and streamlining process. The Party also reshuffled its ranks and introduced a new lineup of key leaders.
Approximately three months after intense structural apparatus reforms, the CPV unveiled its core leadership team within the reconfigured organizational structure. This lineup spans key bodies, including the Party Central Committee, the Politburo, the Secretariat, various party committees, and affiliated party organizations.
Accordingly, the Party Central Committee — the governing body that operates between Party Congresses — now has 148 official members, a reduction of 32 from the 180 approved at the 13th National Congress in January 2021, along with 20 alternate members. Notably, To Lam has held the position of General Secretary since August 2024, replacing his predecessor, Nguyen Phu Trong, who passed away.
The Politburo currently has 16 members, two fewer than the 18 members elected during the first plenary session of the 13th Party Central Committee in January 2021.
The members include:
Meanwhile, the Secretariat currently consists of 12 members, including eight assigned by the Politburo, and four elected by the Party Central Committee:
Regarding other central party committees, the current standing committees include:
After the restructuring, the Party Central Committee disbanded the Party Committee of Central Agencies and the Party Committee of Central Enterprises.
Currently, the Party Central Committee oversees the following affiliated party organizations:
On Feb. 19, 2025, the National Assembly passed resolutions on the organization of its agencies and determined the number of members in the Standing Committee of the 15th National Assembly (2021-2026 term). As a result, its structure has been streamlined from 14 agencies to 8, including:
The Standing Committee of the National Assembly includes Chairman Tran Thanh Man and six vice chairpersons:
Additionally, the National Assembly oversees the State Audit Office (headed by Chief Auditor Ngo Van Tuan) and the National Election Council.
On Feb. 18, 2025, the National Assembly passed two resolutions on the organizational structure and the number of government members for the 2021-2026 term.
After restructuring, the government now consists of 17 ministries and ministerial-level agencies — six fewer than at the beginning of the term.
The government comprises 25 members, including one prime minister, seven deputy prime ministers, 14 ministers, and three heads of ministerial-level agencies.
17 Ministries and Ministerial-Level Agencies:
The government also has five directly affiliated agencies —three fewer than before:
One key point in the merging process is that the Ministry of Public Security will take over several additional state management functions and responsibilities, including:
Additionally, the government will transfer Vietnam Social Security to the Ministry of Finance and reorganize it as a public service unit under the ministry. However, it remains unclear how this will be implemented. As of Feb. 7, 2025, the Ministry of Finance reported that after merging with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, Vietnam Social Security reduced its operational units by approximately 3,600.
Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) is considered the country's economic powerhouse. To grant the city greater autonomy, the National Assembly issued Resolution 98 in 2023, introducing a pilot program for special policies and mechanisms.
Due to this resolution, HCMC has retained some administrative units during the restructuring process.
At a thematic meeting on Feb. 20, 2025, the HCMC People’s Council approved a draft resolution to establish seven departments (restructured from existing agencies) and streamline other administrative units.
The newly established departments include:
The Food Safety Department will continue operating under a special pilot mechanism. Meanwhile, several agencies, including the City Inspectorate, Department of Tourism, Department of Culture and Sports, Department of Health, Department of Education and Training, Department of Justice, Department of Industry and Trade, and the Office of the HCMC People’s Committee, will undergo internal restructuring to streamline operations.
Additionally, HCMC proposed merging the Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs with the HCMC Union of Friendship Organizations under the name: The Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs of HCMC. However, the Ministry of Home Affairs advised against this merger, citing differences in these agencies' functions, responsibilities, and operational mechanisms.
The leadership structure of the HCMC People’s Committee has also changed. More specifically:
On Feb. 14, 2025, the Politburo and the Secretariat issued Conclusion No. 126, assigning the Government Party Committee to coordinate with relevant agencies to study and propose plans to eliminate the district-level administrative system and merge certain provincial-level administrative units by 2025.
Previously, according to Resolution No. 1211/2016 and Resolution No. 27/2022 of the National Assembly Standing Committee, the criteria for provincial-level administrative units were based on population size, land area, and the number of subordinate district-level units. However, some provinces do not fully meet these standards, necessitating mergers to streamline the administrative apparatus and improve governance efficiency.
Relevant authorities are researching and drafting specific proposals, which are expected to be submitted to the Politburo in the third quarter of 2025.
Vietnam currently has 63 provinces and centrally governed cities with a population exceeding 100 million. After the Vietnam War ended in 1975, it had 72 provincial-level administrative units.
From 1975 to 2008, multiple rounds of provincial mergers and divisions occurred. In 2008, after merging Ha Tay Province and several other administrative units into Hanoi, the country had a total of 63 provinces and centrally governed cities.
Key Events * European Union Pressures Vietnam Over Human Rights Violations at UN Meeting * Vietnam Moves to Amend the Constitution and
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has unveiled its priority campaigns for 2025, focusing on grave threats to press freedom and the
Huỳnh Kha and Hiếu Mạnh wrote this article in Vietnamese, which was published in Luat Khoa Magazine on February 24,
On February 27, 2025, the Hanoi People's Court sentenced journalist and author Truong Huy San — also known by
Vietnam's independent news and analyses, right in your inbox.
