Ministries, localities told not to buy cars
Ministries and localities have been told not to buy cars this year unless otherwise dictated by a comprehensive review of the number of State-owned cars.
Chi also ordered the ministries and localities not to use money from Official Development Assistance (ODA) and preferential and commercial loans to buy State-owned cars.
Management boards of foreign-aid projects that want to buy cars are required to submit a detailed plan to the finance ministry for approval, he said.
Since March 1, Hanoi is the first locality in the country to carry out a pilot programme of travel allowances to officials of the departments of transport, finance, planning and investment, labour, invalid and social affairs, as well as State-agencies in the districts of Ha Dong, Long Bien, Thanh Tri and Gia Lam.
The maximal travel allowance is 9.3 million VND (407 USD) a month.
Mai Xuan Vinh, head of the Finance Department’s Public Property Management Office, said redundant State-owned cars at the agencies would be handed over to the city administration, which would allocate them to other State-agencies lacking State-owned cars. Schools and hospitals were among those on the priority list.
Data from the city’s Finance Department showed the city has about 400 State-owned cars, with the cost to run a car about 223 million VND (9,750 USD) each year.
The programme is expected to save the capital budget 50 billion VND (2.2 million USD) a year. The city plans to introduce the programme at all State-agencies by October.-