Binh Phuoc Pledges to Give Favourable Conditions to Investors
Binh Phuoc province plays an importnat role in the socio-economic development of the southeastern region. How have the role as well as the advantages of porteitals been promoted?
Binh Phuoc province has an area of 687,462 hectares, situatiing in the southeastern region and palying the role as a bridge linking the region with the Central Highlands and the Northeastern area of Cambodia. With the essential status, the province plays an important role not only in developing the economy, but also in ensuring the security and defense of the region in particular and of the country in general.
During the past years, Binh Duong has mainly focused on promoting the plantation of industrial crops as an advantage of the province. By doing that, the province has topped the list of localities nationwide areas of rubber, cashew, pepper. Currently, the province has 124,000 hectares of rubber, producing an average of 163,000 tons of latex per annum, 161,000 hectares of cashew with the annual output of 156,000 tons and over 10,000 hectares of pepper with the annual output of 26,000 tons.
In parallel with developing the industrial crops, Binh Phuoc has also transfered its economic mechanism towards industries and services. As a result, the province has so far been left out of the list of agriculture-based provinces.
The province’s transport system has been upgraded, with 100 per cent of communes having built transport road to the communal center. The highway 13 is relatively convinient to travel from Ho Chi Minh City to Camodia while the highway 14 connects the province with central highlands provinces.
In addition, once the Ho Chi Minh trail is completed, it will connect the province with provinces in the southwestern. On schedule, as the trans-Asian railway route is put into operational, it will open an trading opportunity for ont only Binh Phuoc but also for both the southeastern region and the northeastern of Cambodia and Laos.
Besides, a series of huge works have been underway like the US$300 million Binh Phuoc cement plant which is expected to be finished this year; the Thac Mo hydropower plant; the Srok Phu Mieng hydropower plant and the Can Don hydropower plant which have been generating electricity for the national power grid at an capacity of respectively 150 MW, 51MW and 72MW.
In addition, the province also kicked off the construction of indsutrial zones like Chon Thanh, Minh Hung, TanKhai, Tan Thanh, Nam Dong Phu and the Hoa Lu border gate economic zone. These are major factors contributing to the province’s sustainable economic development.
Binh Phuoc is also cosnidered to be fully potential for tehe tourism development thanks to owning many landscapes like Bu Lach grass-plot, Bu Gia Map national park, Ca Tien, Ba Ra mountain, Mo waterfall and famous historical sites like Bom Bo Village, the reception house of the Provisional Revolution Government of South Vietnam, the headqaurters base and Ho Chi Minh trail.
During the province’s socio-economic development plan for the five-year period of 2006-2010, Binh Phuoc has promoted many measures which maxinimumly take advantage of available sources and potentials for the economic development towards the indsutrialization of agriculture, the increase of indsutrial density and services, the development of concentrated material areas and increase of human source quality and vocational training schools.
As a result, the province’s economic growth stands at high level, with the GDP growth of 14-15 per cent per year on average. The agro-forestry-fishery sector accounts for 51.32 per cent of the economic structure, the indsutry-construction 22.4 per cent and services 26.28 per cent. Last year, teh province’s per capita income reached US$860. Regarding the investment, the whole province has had 2,068 enterprises with a total registered capital of VND11.21 trillion.
It is believed that Binh Phuoc province has strived to improve its investmetn and business environment over the past time. However, some investors says they have not yet felt freindly. What do you think about that?
In order to lure investors to Binh Phuoc and give the most favorable conditions to them, the province has offered many investment priority policies as well as improve administrative procedures. During the past time, the province’s investment environmment has been significantly imrpoved. Binh Duong’s provincial competition index (PCI) climbed to the 32nd position in 2008 from the 49th in 2007.
This is really a encouraging signal. However, some state offices still remain complicated procedures, making difficult for investors, meanwhile investors themselves do not inform of their difficulties to the local authorities. These are allegedly major causes that a few firms said that they had not yet felt the investment environment friendly.
To boost the development of Binh Phuoc and create the most favorable conditions for investors, the province will follow the motto “investors’ work is also the task of provincial authorities and agencies“. I asked enterprises who are made difficulties by individual, organization or agency in the province should inform leaders of the provincial people’s committee or directly to teh province’s mayor. For us, we will continue raising the awareness of cadres as well as tightly controlling the implementation. Any case who lacks sense of responsibility or makes difficulties for investors will be punished strictly. Selecting a team of responsible and confidential cadres is Binh Phuoc’s purpose in order to the province’s image to investors and busineses.
Both opportunities and challenges coming as Vietnam is more deeply integrating in the global economy. What does Binh Phuoc province do to take chances and overcome challenges?
Since teh country joined teh World Trade Organization (WTO), the wave of investment flocking into Vietnam in general and Binh Phuoc in particular is higher and higher. This is a good opportunity for the province’s development. However, many challenges are facing Binh Phuoc such as the poor infrastructures, the weak and unskilled human forces. Although the investment environment has been imporved, the competition index is still at medium level.
To settle the difficulties, and catch up with new opportunities, in the coming time, Binh Phuoc will focus on investing infrastructures including transport system, water supply and drainage in urban areas, particularly investing facilities and training skilled manpower for industrial zones to meet the demand of investors. in addition, the provicne will continue simplifying administrative procedures and raising teh provincial competition index.
