Hanoi is seeking experience from Singapore in urban governance, social housing development and enhancing capacity for cadres, Chairman of municipal People’s Committee Tran Sy Thanh has said.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired a conference on August 1 to discuss measures to expand social housing facilities for workers and low-income earners.

Ho Chi Minh City expects to build about 35,000 social housing units with 2.5 million square metres of floor space in 2021-2025, and nearly 58,000 units with a floor space of 4.08 million square metres by 2030.

Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Phan Van Mai said the city plans to build one million units of affordable housing for low-income workers.

Vietnam has less than half of the low-income houses it targeted for in 2020, according to data from the Ministry of Construction (MoC).

The Hanoi People’s Committee has issued a decision approving the outline for a task of devising the capital’s housing development programme for 2021-2030, with vision towards 2040.

Local construction firms face the risk of bankruptcy as the price of steel has soared 40% recently.

Workshops sharing experience in social housing development of the Republic of Korea (RoK) and policy improvements in Vietnam will be held in major cities of HCM City, Da Nang and Hanoi in the coming time, according to the Ministry of Construction (MoC).

The Government has issued a new decree aiming to promote the development of social housing.

The standard level of social assistance will increase from VND270,000 (US$11.72) to VND360,000 (US$15.63) per month from July 1, 2021, according to Decree No.20/2021/ND-CP providing social support policies for those entitled to social protection.