According to the draft decree by the government outlining the functions, duties, authority, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (a merger of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), presented at the ongoing extraordinary session of the National Assembly, the ministry’s structure comprises 30 units.
Proposed organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment featuring 30 unitsHeadquarters of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, located at 10 Ton That Thuyet, Hanoi (Photo: Dinh Trung).
Of these, 26 units assist the Minister of Agriculture and Environment in performing state management functions, including: Department of International Cooperation; Department of Planning and Finance; Department of Science and Technology; Department of Legal Affairs; Department of Organization and Personnel; Office of the Ministry; Inspectorate of the Ministry;
Department of Digital Transformation; Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection; Department of Livestock and Veterinary; Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Surveillance; Department of Forestry and Forest Rangers; Department of Irrigation Infrastructure Management and Construction; Department of Dyke Management and Disaster Prevention; Department of Rural Economic Cooperation and Development; Department of Quality, Processing, and Market Development;
Department of Land Management; Department of Water Resource Management; Department of Geology and Minerals of Vietnam; Department of Environment; Department of Climate Change; Department of Nature Conservation and Biodiversity; Department of Meteorology and Hydrology; Department of Seas and Islands of Vietnam; Department of Surveying, Mapping, and Geographic Information of Vietnam; National Remote Sensing Department.
The four public non-business units directly under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment include: Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Strategy and Policy; Newspaper of Agriculture and Environment; Journal of Agriculture and Environment; National Extension Center.
In the above draft, the Department of Planning and Finance is proposed to have three divisions, while the Department of Organization and Personnel will also consist of three divisions.
The Minister of Agriculture and Environment will define the functions, duties, authority, and organizational structure of the subordinate units within the ministry and submit a decision to the Prime Minister regarding the list of other public non-business units under the ministry as per regulations.
Units under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment specified in Decree No. 68/2022 and those under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development outlined in Decree No. 105/2022 of the Government will continue operating under current regulations until competent authorities complete the organizational merger and issue decisions defining the functions, duties, authority, and organizational structure of the units as regulated.
The draft decree clearly states that the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment is a government agency responsible for state management in the following areas: agriculture; forestry; salt production; fisheries; irrigation; disaster prevention; rural development; land; water resources; mineral resources and geology; environment; meteorology and hydrology; climate change; surveying and mapping; integrated resource management and environmental protection of seas and islands; remote sensing; and state management of public services in fields under the purview of the ministry.
The main headquarters of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment is expected to be located at the current site of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, at 10 Ton That Thuyet Street, My Dinh Ward, Nam Tu Liem District, Hanoi.
Thus, the organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has been streamlined, reorganized, and consolidated into 30 units from 26 units of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and 27 units of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
At a meeting earlier this month, Deputy Minister of Justice Dang Hoang Oanh noted that this is one of the ministries with the most significant reductions in units.
Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha emphasized that the draft decree should not merely mechanically combine the contents of two decrees specifying the functions, duties, and authority of the two ministries but must also incorporate updated legal provisions and new management ideas related to land, resources, environment, and agriculture.
