Part 1: Suitabe targets aimed

Binh Duong provincial authority is preparing conditions for attracting investments, especially foreign direct investments (FDI) to continually affirm positions in the new stages. The firm foundations and available potentials put the province in a ready position for strategies in the next stages, particularly the target of attracting over USD 9 billion of FDI from now to 2025.

Production of supporting industries is to service garment making in advanced lines of fewer labor. Photo: Duy Tinh

Affirmed efforts

The eleven months of 2020 in the face of complicated and unpredictable Covid-19 pandemic directly affected all aspects of socio-economic status of the province; however, Binh Duong provincial authority has effectively achieved the proposed targets, particularly the 6.78% of economic growth which is relatively high in the nation. Within the same time span, over USD 1.73 billion of FDI has been attracted to the province, exceeding 23.7% of the year’s plan. Accumulatively, the current 3,913 FDI projects have been registered for USD 35.3 billion, putting Binh Duong on the leaders of FDI attraction in the nation.

Evaluating the mentioned achievements, Vu Tien Loc, Chairman of Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) believed that Binh Duong has maintained its position of investment attraction and enterprise development thanks to efforts of improving investment and business environment in long term.

In the past years, Binh Duong provincial authority has made daring moves of reforming developmental models to create breakthroughs in investment attraction and establishment of new growth momentum for sustainable development through the project of  Binh Duong Smart City and the triple helix model (government-enterprises-schools) to effectively mobilize resources. Binh Duong provincial authority has also at the soonest recognized that on-site investment promotion to let the foreign investors speak out has been the most effective approach. This has been evidenced by Horasis which was organized twice in Binh Duong in 2018-2019 beyond the regular schedule of once every year at each location of the group. The economic forums and major conferences of potential investors have help Binh Duong invite guests and become a center of investment attraction in the region.

Binh Duong provincial authority has also been for regular talks with and assist investors and enterprises to get out of difficulties and seek for new developmental opportunities. Regular talks with enterprises in recent years have attract major investors in a way of affirming that Binh Duong is a destination of safe and attractive investments.

Targets and resolutions aimed

Despite advantages, Binh Duong provincial leaders believed that more proactive and drastic actions should be made in the race of attracting FDI flows. To grasp up the chances of luring FDI, geographic advantages are not the sole factor in the face of needs for infrastructure, competitiveness, investment and business environment, and reforms of institutions. Besides, simplification of investment procedures, supporting policies to create skillful working forces, and regular dialogues of provincial leaders to major investors to know their needs should be carried out.

For the time to come, the attraction of FDI projects shall be significantly considered by the province including priority for projects of new, clean and advanced technologies aiming at sustainable development. Nguyen Hoang Thao, Deputy Secretary of Provincial Party Committee cum Chairman of Provincial People’s Committee informed that to aim for the targets, before hand and for the long term, the leading resolution of the province is to be persistent to the motto of servicing the public and enterprises. On this manner, all-level authorities of the province need to continually improve investment and business environment.

According to Binh Duong provincial Department of Planning and Investment, the target for 2021-2025 is to attract VND 9 billion of FDI. Mai Ba Truoc, Director of Department of Planning and Investment the FDI attraction is persistent to quality, effectiveness and selection. Of the actions, attention should be paid to potentially rich investors from Japan, Korea, and Europe to cooperate, receive technologies and to make use of domestic industry spread. The provincial authority is implementing some measures of setting up favorable investment environment, planning for supporting industry development until 2025, refinement of industrial parks and clusters and traffic infrastructure. Besides, the provincial authority continued to construct e-government heading to digital authority so as to reduce time and cost for enterprises in their related activities. 

Nguyen Hoang Thao believed that Binh Duong provincial authority is for various solutions beyond the improvement of FDI attraction as more efforts are being made to reform administrative procedures and to improve traffic infrastructure for better investment environment into extended industrial parks. Moreover, diversifying investment promotion in coordination with ministries and departments for more regional connection to neighboring provinces and cities regarding the selecting and calling for investments should be in place. The provincial authority should continue to offer good conditions for and assist investors through difficults. More efforts of attracting FDI should be made to elevate competitiveness and realization of rapid, sustainable and modern development targets. (To be continued)

Reported by Ngoc Thanh - Translated by Vi Bao

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