Relocation funding for Long Thanh airport residents short by $103M

The relocation project was approved with a total cost of VND22.86 trillion to be disbursed by the end of last year, but of it, the government was not able to disburse VND2.51 in time.

Regulations prevent the government from disbursing the VND2.51 trillion now.

The government in the end of last month proposed to the National Assembly to extend the disbursement deadline until the end of 2024.

The proposal was rejected because the money was part of previous years’ financial plans and the books have been closed, said Vu Hong Thanh, chairman of the assembly’s economic committee.

To access the fund, the government needs to request lawmakers’ permission to use the same amount from a new plan using contingency funds in either 2023 or 2024, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong said.

Chairman of the National Assembly Vuong Dinh Hue said that the government needs to make a specific proposal so that lawmakers can consider it.

Long Thanh International Airport in the southern province of Dong Nai has an estimated cost of VND336.63 trillion and a designed capacity of 100 million passengers annually.

Its first phase, with a capacity of 25 million passengers, is scheduled to be completed by 2025.