In contrast, the Ministry of Health (MoH) recorded the lowest index, at 81.01%, 14.47 percentage points lower than that of the MoJ.

Twelve ministries and ministry-level agencies averaged 87.2% on the overall PAR Index, a 2.77 percentage point jump from 84.43% in 2024. Six ministries beat the average.

The 2025 results split across two tiers. Group A, with scores of 90% or above, included the MoJ, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), the Ministry of Finance (MoF), and the MoHA. Group B, with scores ranging from 80% to under 90%, comprised the Ministry of Construction (MoC), the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MoEA), the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST); the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MoCST); the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), the Ministry of Education and Training (MoET), and the MoH.

Five of seven component indices improved year-on-year, namely institutional and administrative procedure reform, organisational restructuring, public finance overhaul, and digital transformation. Meanwhile, two others declined, including administrative reform leadership and governance, and civil service regime reforms.

The leadership and governance index led all components at 93.99%, signaling sustained high-level attention from the Party Central Committee, Government, and Prime Minister. The slight dip from 94.95% in 2024 reflected communication lapses and patchy reporting by several ministries, the MoHA said.

Organisational restructuring scored second at 92.02%, up 1.4 percentage points from 2024 (90.62%). Eleven out of 12 agencies cleared 90%. The MoCST was the sole underperfomer, at 87.94%.

Administrative procedure reform placed third at 89.49%, surging 6.11 percentage points from 83.38%. The MoHA, MoJ, SBV, MoCST, MoFA, and MoC all surpassed 90%.

Civil service reform slid to fourth, dropping 1.99 percentage points to 86.77% from 88.77%. The central bank led at 95.83%, followed by the MoF (95.06%) and MoJ (93.48%). Nine ministries fell short of 90% while the MoFA placed last at 69.60%.

Public finance reform jumped to fifth, vaulting 10.53 percentage points to 85.08% from 74.55%. The SBV, MoJ, and MoF all cleared 90%. The MoH (69.8%) and MoCST (67.62%) anchored the bottom, both below 70%.

Institutional reform ranked sixth at 83.99%, rising 4.56 percentage points from 79.42%. The MoJ stood alone above 90%, at 94.87%. The MoCST (79.79%), MoFA (77%), and MoEA (74.12%) came in below 80%.

Digital transformation in state agencies trailed all components at 81.39%, slightly up from 81.20%. The MoJ (96.86%) and MoF (96.05%) dominated the category. The MoCST (67.27%), MoH (62.97%), MET (62.7%) propped up the bottom.

Hanoi named second nationwide in Public Administration Reform Index

The high ranking was mainly thanks to Hanoi’s efforts to improve its investment environment, address enterprises’ concerns regarding institutional aspects and administrative procedures.