Rural communes in Vietnam are struggling with severe staff shortages, which means many public services are delayed or missing. Understanding how these gaps affect daily life helps explain the challenges residents face.

Trung Son commune has filled only 36 of its 58 allocated staff positions, even after the province assigned eight additional cadres. The commune’s Public Service Center has had no dedicated staff for more than a year, leaving many administrative tasks unattended. Because many leadership posts remain vacant, the local government must stretch the few employees it has. When specialized expertise is required, the commune must seek advice from provincial authorities or hire consulting firms, Ha Thi Nga, secretary of the Trung Son Commune Party Committee, said.

Truong Duc Vu, head of the Culture Division in Trung Son, said his four‑person team now covers several areas of work. He personally puts up flags, writes radio bulletins and updates the commune’s website, duties that would normally be shared with other units. These extra tasks illustrate how staff gaps force officials to multitask.

In Yen Khuong Commune, the Public Service Center relies on a single employee, Ho Minh Hung. Hung also handles culture, information, communications and public‑outreach responsibilities, from writing news reports to producing radio programs. The heavy workload shows how a single staff member must cover many functions when local expertise is missing.

Staff shortages in these rural communes mean that essential services are slower, less reliable, and often depend on external help. The few remaining officials carry a heavy burden, directly affecting the everyday lives of residents.