Hanoi (VNA) – The Ministry of Construction shouldtake more effective steps to support the development of low-cost housing andbuild an information system about housing and property market to improvetransparency, management and planning, said Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

PM Phuc made the remarks during a conference held by theMinistry of Construction in Hanoi on January 16 to review the sector’sperformances last year and discuss plans for 2018.

The PM spoke highly of the sector’s development and theministry’s management of the local property market in 2017.

He also pointed out shortcomings of the sector last year,notably the poor quality of several construction planning schemes that hadshort-term vision and were not suitable to real-life situations; lack ofinspections of at-risk and old buildings in urban areas; and an over-supply ofluxury apartments and a shortage of low-end and mid-end housing projects.

The PM urged the ministry to make more efforts this yearto achieve a 9.2-percent growth and to complete all basic infrastructureprojects by 2020.

The sector must attract more private investments,particularly under the Public-Private Partner form, to improve the projects’quality and efficiency; and at the same time, foster the use of advancedtechnologies to increase productivity in the context of the fourth industrialrevolution.

According to reports by the Ministry of Construction, theconstruction sector ranks third among the largest contributors to Vietnam’s GDPgrowth of 6.81 percent in 2017.

The construction industry had a successful year in 2017with most figures exceeding development targets, Deputy Minister ofConstruction Le Quang Hung said, noting that the industry expanded by 8.7percent in 2017.

The rate of urbanization was estimated at 37.5 percent,0.9 percent higher than 2016 and now the country has 813 cities, up 11 citiesyear on year, he noted.

The floor area per person averaged 23.4 sq.m last year,up 0.6 sq.m year on year, the Ministry of Construction reported. The countryconstructed a further 0.19 million sq.m of low-cost housing in urban areas,bringing the total area of urban low-cost housing to 3.49 million sq.m.

In 2017, five more housing projects for low-income earnersand workers at industrial parks were put into use, providing 1,225 apartments.Sixteen other projects are underway, expected to supply 5,200 apartments.

At the event, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phucawarded the Ministry of Construction and its subordinate units Labour Orders inrecognition for their great performances.-VNA