HEPZA: The support services for enterprises to be strengthened and developed

There are some optimistic signs of the economic recovery available to overcoming the degradation, but the difficulty of some enterprises in the HCMC’s IZs and EPZs has still kept going: no business orders, output limitation, and goods of competitive inadequacies. Therefore, the leaders need to focus on how to strengthen and develop the support services in production, providing enterprises with more effective tools to face the challenges 
 
Support capital to enterprises for technology innovation.

The Government has implemented the demand stimulus package with the preferential interest rate to support enterprises to  invest in  machine and technology. In addition, some non-profit organizations have also developed many programs of preferential loans, transfer of modern technologies for the enterprises in Hochiminh City. However, up to now, there have had very few projects meeting the loans, the reason is not the inadequate budget, nor the requirements from the enterprises but the unskilled makers, they have not really had enough condition to meet the loans.

Many enterprises have cooperated with the universities like Polytechnic University, Economics University,… to set up the projects for loans that are still not meet to the  requirement. Even they have got the loans they still do not know who is the right partner to buy the technology, how to start and innovate it. So, it is necessary to have specialists from the Department of Science & Technology as a leading group in consulting the effective method of technology innovation and training the skilled workers to meet the new technology.  

Trade Promotion

Expanding market in local and abroad will create more sales opportunities for enterprises. It requires to strengthen trade promotion both inside and outside the country. The Investment Trade Promotion Center (ITPC) should develop more its role of glue between the retailers and manufacturers, strengthen the cooperation with  Industry Associations especially the Hepza Bussiness Association  in EPZs and IZs  (HBA) in implementing the trade promotion programs and searching the market effectively. The Information & Industry Services Center(IISC) of Hepza – is gradually promoting its support role to the development of trade and investment in EPZs – with  a lot of matchmaking programs between the local enterprises and foreign ones. In addition, IISC has joined with the exhibition  organizations to hold trade fairs for displaying the goods and services in IZs and EPZs.

Should we have closer cooperation between ITPC, HBA and IISC  to set up the trade promotion strategy more thriftily, stably and effectively for each industry. In addition, it needs the information exchange among these organizations to regularly update  and  propagate information on marketing, trade promotion, exhibition fairs and the latest  consumers’ trend to each enterprise helping them advertise their products and look for the new customers and markets.

Promote administrative reform

The customs service requires ventilation, especially the electronic customs clearance for declaration to cut down the waste of time. Therefore, the Customs needs  to quickly overcome the technical problems like poor internet connection, software errors, that minimizes the long delay causing loss for companies. Besides, the  information technology system should be improved to exchange information between Hepza and enterprises in IZs-EPZs. This will help enterprises update and catch the latest information on related policies and laws  quickly.

Labor supply to enterprises’ demand

A very important factor to help enterprises develop strongly and stably is human resources. They need the teamwork with qualified skills, enthusiasm and  close relationship with enterprises. The  fluctuated workforce causes disorder, affects  the quality and process of production, and the workers provided by the vocational centers is not adequate to the demand that is the most difficult problem. Therefore, the Center of Human Resources Forecast and Labor Market Information  is officially established in Hochiminh City with the role of  planning, workforce forecasting and labor market information providing; it also does a research and survey  on human resource then  analyzes and evaluates it in order to supply the adequate  information on workforce and  employment. The Center has signed the cooperation memorandums with four organizations, including the Employment Service Center of Hepza. This is really  necessary support for the enterprises in the EPZs – IZs in the human resources development.