Tourists on a beach in Đà Nẵng City. The city is considering mechanisms to promote free trade zone development. — VNA/VNS Photo Trần Lê Lâm

HÀ NỘI — It is necessary to develop special mechanisms for Đà Nẵng to create breakthroughs in the development of a free trade zone, heard the meeting of the Ministry of Planning and Investment last week.

In the latest draft version of a resolution of the National Assembly on the pilot implementation of some special mechanisms and policies to promote the development of the central city, two major policies are expected to create breakthroughs, Secretary of the city’s Party Committee Nguyễn Văn Quảng said.

Those include the pilot foundation of Đà Nẵng Free Trade Zone association with Liên Chiểu Port and mechanisms which allow the municipal People’s Council to set their own policies for the semiconductor and AI industries.

The free trade zone will aim to attract investment and promote production, trade and services and duty-free business.

Incentives for investments in the free trade zone will be similar to investment in economic zones. Based on the scale and sector of the investment, the municipal authorities will decide the term of land use which can last up to 70 years.

Director of the Foreign Investment Agency Đỗ Nhất Hoàng said that to create breakthrough developments, it is necessary to have bold policies that allow investors, especially multinational corporations, to invest in the free trade zone without having to have a project as usual.

Specifically, investors can be allowed to set up a company in the free trade zone within just one hour to retain them, rather than being required to develop a project to get the investment license, Hoàng said.

This is the model Hainan Free Trade Zone in China is applying to attract multinational corporations to set up offices.

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyễn Chí Dũng said that in the long term, it is necessary to develop a law for the development of a free trade zone to consolidate investors’ confidence.

Dũng said Đà Nẵng should propose favourable visa polices for the free trade zone. Investment policies and tax incentives should also be favourable, he said.

It is necessary to increase decentralisation of power to Đà Nẵng’s authorities to create a revolution in FDI and a strong premise for the development of Đà Nẵng and all of Việt Nam.

Đà Nẵng should use zoning to develop as a financial centre, he said. — VNS