Ho Chi Minh City Ward Lacks Street Names, Numbers, Hindering Development

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – Residents and businesses in Tan Hai ward are grappling with a significant administrative void: the absence of official street names and house numbers. This deficiency is not merely an inconvenience; it poses a substantial obstacle to effective state management, hinders daily life for citizens, impedes business operations, and undermines Ho Chi Minh City's ambitious smart city initiatives.

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The lack of synchronized address data is becoming a 'bottleneck' in administrative management, resident registration, house numbering, civil transactions, and population data digitization in the area.

According to the People's Committee of Tan Hai ward, the lack of synchronized address data has become a critical bottleneck. It complicates administrative tasks such as managing residency, issuing house numbers, facilitating civil transactions, and digitizing population data. Huynh Huu Nghia, Chairman of the People's Committee, explained that the ward, established through the merger of two previous wards in the former Ba Ria - Vung Tau province, covers a large area with a significant population. However, its foundation as rural communes that only recently transitioned to ward status on March 1, 2025, means its urban development infrastructure is still nascent.

The consequences of this lack of formal addresses are far-reaching. For administrative purposes, officials face difficulties verifying residences, managing population records, processing land-related documents, and handling civil status procedures. Citizens encounter hurdles when conducting bank transactions, registering businesses, applying for loans, or undertaking other legal processes due to unclear addresses. Many resort to descriptive, informal directions like "opposite the coffee shop" or "near the gas station," leading to confusion and errors.

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The social infrastructure and urban technical infrastructure system have not been fully invested in, there are no street name signs, and the urban appearance is not commensurate with its position as a ward of Ho Chi Minh City.

For businesses, the absence of street names and numbers directly impacts logistics, shipping, contract negotiations, and access to public services. In the context of Ho Chi Minh City's push for digital governance and smart urban development, this data gap makes it difficult to integrate Tan Hai ward's databases for population, land, planning, and infrastructure. Nghia noted that while the former Phu My City had initiated address database projects, Tan Hai was excluded, leaving the ward with virtually no inherited data. Addressing this issue is now a priority to align with the city's directives for digital transformation and improved urban administration.

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Before, Phu My City had implemented the construction of an address database and installed street name signs in the area. However, the Tan Hai area was outside the scope of implementation, so currently, the locality has almost no inherited data.