Whilst the municipal and provincial People's Committees constitute the principal arm of local government in Việt Nam, each of the country's five municipalities and 59 provinces has a dedicated Service of Culture and Information (Sở Văn hóa Thông tin) which is directly responsible for the management of culture and information within municipal or provincial borders. Those of the capital city of Hà Nội and of Hồ Chí Minh City are of particular importance within the overall national administrative structure for both culture and information. Each Municipal or Provincial Service of Culture and Information is directly responsible for its activities to the Municipal or Provincial People's Committee, but there is also a vertical line relationship from the Municipal or Provincial Service of Culture and Information to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) and the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) in Hà Nội, enabling the latter to provide guidance on both policy and practice relating to local culture and information.

Offices of Culture and Information also operate both at town, township and municipal/rural district level and (at least in theory) also at municipal ward/commune level; at each level the system is characterised by a direct responsibility from the Office of Culture and Information to its People's Committee and complemented by a vertical line of responsibility from the Office of Culture and Information to the Office of Culture and Information at the level above - in this way, for example, a Municipal Ward Office of Culture and Information Office reports directly to the Municipal Ward People's Committee but also looks to the District Office of Culture and Information for guidance on culture and information, whilst the District Office of Culture and Information Office in its turn reports directly to the District People's Committee but also looks to the Municipal or Provincial Office of Culture and Information for guidance on culture and information.