HANOI Vietnam 's National Assembly Thursday approved plans to merge provinces and cities, slashing nearly 80,000 state jobs, as part of major reforms to the communist country's administrative structure. Lawmakers voted to reduce the country's 63 provincial and city administrations to just 34, as the government looks to radically cut state expenditure. The move comes after the government cut the number of ministries and agencies from 30 to 22 in February, resulting in 23,000 job losses. Vietnam'