Part 1: State-owned enterprises – locomotive economic development

Binh Duong has been emerged from a purely agricultural province to become one of the best industrialized and modernized provinces in the country. In particular, the most important role of state enterprises can not be ignored. The economic leverage has been successfully used by generations of Binh Duong leaders throughout time.

Social welfare secured

Summing up the 35 years of construction and growth, Nguyen Van Minh, Chairman and CEO of Binh Duong 3-2 Protrade Corporation recalled the days of hardship: "The new stage of opening and reforms, the unemployment rate was very high while the number of enterprises and manufacturers was just a few. The birth of 3-2 Corporation was the development of production, business and income generation for localities contributing to creation of jobs and social security assurance.”

State-owned enterprises in Binh Duong hold the significant roles of reforms and development through the years. In this photo: A corner of Binh Duong New City. Photo: Xuan Thi

Upholding the flexibility and predictability of the situation, leaders of 3-2 Corporation had quickly shifted its focus from production planning to market expansion, opening up a variety of industries such as farm establishment for exportation, factory establishment for production of chopsticks for exportation, and for making roofing sheets from roofed slates and soffit slabs. Those factories had created jobs for more than 3,000 workers. Taking advantage of market opportunities, the company boldly hired Korean experts to train skilled workers and set up export garment enterprises while attracting foreign partners to invest in establishing export wood processing companies of KPM, Song Be Golf Palm Company, and Foremost Dairy Company. The province had also transferred Vinh Phu Pulp Company, which was losing, to be merged and quickly became effective after consolidation.

Up to now, 3-2 Corporation has more than 10,000 employees working in 9 joint stock companies, 5 joint ventures, 8 subsidiaries, factories and farms. The corporation trade union has a membership rate of more than 98% in 9 affiliated grassroots of professional activities to protect workers' rights. The Youth Union also has a membership rate of more than 50% among young people in 5 branches and groups, leading in all activities of the units. The corporation is entering a stage of comprehensive development, in addition to technological innovation, strongly moving from outsourcing to production and exportation, increasing competitiveness of products in the market. The Corporation is also interested in training high-quality human resources and succession teams, strong enough to lead enterprises in continual development in the period of our country's extensive integration with the world.

Huynh Cong Phat, Deputy General Director of 3-2 Corporation, said that the creation of jobs for 3,000 laborers in the past has contributed greatly to social security that not all private company could have applied. In the socio-economic development of the province, state-owned enterprises in general, including the 3-2 Corporation have always been taking the lead with leverage to attract investment and business development and social security.

Infra-construction

The lesson that leaders from Binh Duong province had learned from the process of attracting investment is to create a favorable investment environment supported by the open and efficient policy system along with reasonable and synchronous infrastructure system.

The first infrastructure of the province was implemented in the direction of socialization, the section of National Highway number 13 passing through the center of the province was upgraded and enlarged in BOT (Build - Operate - Transfer) mode. Thanks to this project and together with the preference for investment, the whole nation know about Binh Duong while enterprises and investors rush to Binh Duong as a new land potential.

If National Highway number 13 was the main route assigned by the provincial People's Committee to Becamex Corporation; then, the vital traffic system was also provided by the state-owned enterprises of the province with their own capital, continuing to develop key transport systems for industrial and urban development including important streets of DT743 and auxiliary branches; construction of urban routes is assigned to Binh Duong Construction Materials Company, Binh Duong Genimex General Import - Export Production Company in various forms of BT (Build - Transfer) or BOT (Build - Operation - Transfer).

Being present at the signing ceremony of comprehensive cooperation between Becamex IDC Corporation and Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), Tran Bac Ha, former Governor of BIDV Board of Directors said frankly: "Over 10 years ago, Binh Duong was a large area of ​​sparse people so it is difficult to call and attract investments. BIDV was the investment bank in Binh Duong because we see the determination of the provincial leaders as well as the reality in the economic development strategy of the province. In particular, the role of state-owned enterprises in building and constructing infrastructure systems. It would be impossible for us to deliver to the private at the time because we dit not have enough money."

According to Mr. Ha, thanks to the state-owned enterprises, the method of construction is also creative, bringing about high efficiency for the society in the system of connected and synchronous infrastructure created in the process of operation and development.

Assessing the synchrony in infrastructure system and socio-economic development policy of the province, Tran Ngoc Liem, Deputy Director of Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ho Chi Minh City Branch, said: "By the real survey in Binh Duong, we recognized the mechanism and policies of breakthroughs and creativity. Among them, the most prominent is the role of state-owned enterprises in the province such as Becamex, 3-2 Corporation, and Thanh Le".

The Provincial Center of Public Administration, for instant, is very effective with the responsibility of the staff in charge of the implementation of the voluntary youth volunteerism, creating a friendly and effective effects in administrative reforms.

It can be seen, the role of state-owned enterprises in the construction and development of Binh Duong is very important as the economic locomotion making up the important rebound. Throughout the history of reforms and development, state-owned enterprises have combined with the government to create high-level infrastructure facilitating and saving a lot of money for the operations of the businesses as well as providing utilities for the public.

Next: Part 2: Resources gathered for development

Reported by Duy Chi – Translated by Vi Bao