Hanoi (VNA) - The northern province of QuangNinh was ranked top in the 2020 PAPI report, which offers an overviewof provinces’ performance through measuring the satisfaction of their citizens,with an aggregate dimensional performance score of 48.881.

The 2020 Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index(PAPI) Report, released on April 14, showed an incremental improvement innational governance and public administration performance during the 2016-2021Government term.

Quang Ninh province was followed by the Mekong Delta's Dong Thap province(46.961) and the northern province of Thai Nguyen (46.471).

Since 2018, PAPI has been co-funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs andTrade (DFAT) of Australia, the Embassy of Ireland and United NationsDevelopment Programme (UNDP) in Vietnam.

The report, which assessed citizenexperiences with national and local government performance in governance,public administration, and public service delivery, showed that the Control ofCorruption in the Public Sector dimension has improved significantly each yearsince 2016.

The dimension on VerticalAccountability Towards Citizens also steadily improved during the 2016-2021term, mainly because an increasing number of citizens have contacted localofficials, in particular village heads and People’s Council delegates.

Dimensions posting declines includedParticipation at Local Levels and Public Administrative Procedures.

“New features of the 2020 PAPI Reportinclude insightful findings on the performance of local governments across twoterms (2011-2016 and 2016-2021); experience of internal migrants with accessingservices in receiving provinces; and voter perception of women in leadershiproles,” UNDP Resident Representative in Vietnam Caitlin Wiesen said in heropening remark at the report launch.

“As the Government embarks on a newterm, PAPI provides rich and deep datasets on citizens’ perception of localgovernment achievement in each of the 63 provinces and important metrics toreview and further improve their performance across eight key dimensions ofgovernance,” she noted.

Analysis in the 2020 PAPI Report showsthat citizen engagement and anti-corruption efforts have a positive correlationwith Vietnam’s ability to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Findings from the 2020 PAPI Report showthat there is a correlation between good governance and effective pandemicresponses, she added.

Over 14,700 citizens were interviewedfor the 2020 PAPI Report. This is the largest number of citizens to participatesince the survey was first conducted nationwide in 2011. For the first time,the survey also gathered responses from citizens with temporary residenceregistration status. Nearly 300 migrants were surveyed in six centrallygoverned municipalities and provinces (Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Bac Ninh, DaNang, Dong Nai and Binh Duong).

In 2021, Quang Ninh aims to maintain its GRDP growth rate at more than 10 percent. It is also striving to maintain its position in the top group in the country in terms of the provincial competitiveness index (PCI), the Public Administration Reform Index (PAR Index), the Satisfaction Index of Public Administrative Services (SIPAS), and the PAPI.

Over the past five years, Quang Ninh has experienced high and sustainable growth, with an average annual growth rate of 10.7 percent. Average GRDP per capita is estimated at 6,700 USD in 2020, two times higher than the country’s average figure.

It topped the PCI rankings for the third year in a row in 2019, according to the PCI 2019 report from the VCCI.

In addition to the PCI, Quang Ninh also led the country in the PAR Index for three consecutive years, in 2017, 2018, and 2019. The province has also been among the best performers in the SIPAS for many years and rose to the top in 2019.

It has also made great strides forward in improving governance and public administration capacity, moving from the 62nd place in 2016 to third in Vietnam’s 2019 PAPI list./.