BÌNH PHƯỚC – Being a newcomer does not mean Bình Phước will forever be “a follower” in terms of economic development, Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc told an investment promotion conference held in the province on Monday.

PM Phúc said the southern province shares many of the advantages that Bình Dương Province, an economic powerhouse in the south, has, especially in terms of geography.

“Bình Phước straddles two of the three corners of the southern economic triangle comprising HCM City and Bình Dương and Đồng Nai provinces.

“It is located in an important position along the gateway between the Central Highlands and HCM City, and has the potential to connect traffic from and to Tân Sơn Nhất and Long Thành airports and Sài Gòn, Thị Vải and Đồng Nai ports.”

He instructed the transport ministry, based on these advantages, to study the feasibility of developing infrastructure to connect the province with Long Thành Airport and link it by train from southern seaports.

The PM said the province has the potential to develop into a “new economic corridor” connecting Việt Nam’s south-eastern region, the Central Highlands and its neighbours such as Laos, Cambodia and Thailand, thanks to the Hoa Lư international border gate.

He said having the border gate which allows a person in the province to travel to four countries in a single day is a great advantage which is rarely found in any other part of Việt Nam.

Thus, it can be used to develop transnational tourism routes, he said.

To attract investors, apart from such geographical advantages, favourable conditions, fertile land, human resources and leadership from local authorities are aslo needed, he said.

He hailed the province’s socio-economic achievements of the past 20 years since its establishment in 1997.

Its per capita income of US$2,670 exceeds the country’s average while its economy is growing at 6.83 per cent on average, he said.

The PM urged the province to further improve its business environment and organise meetings with enterprises to help resolve their problems.

He called on investors and enterprises to pay heed to the social and environmental impacts of their investment.

“Today one billion dollars worth of deals have been signed. It is an impressive number. However, what is important is how many of them will get approval and how fast they will be implemented.”

He instructed local authorities to focus on building brands for the province’s key farm produce such as cashew, coffee and pepper and strengthen the partnership with Bình Dương Province to help each other boost economic growth and build a value chain for the whole southern economic region.

Nguyễn Văn Trăm, chairman of the Bình Phước People’s Committee, said the province always tries its best to create favourable conditions for investors since it understands that their success is its success.

He said the province is prioritising investment in industrial parks and economic zones, high-tech agricultural projects and agri-fishery-forestry processing projects related to its key products.

It also welcomes investment in healthcare, education, sports and amusement projects, he said.

At the conference, the province granted investment registration certificates to 10 FDI projects with a combined investment of more than $315 million and 14 local projects worth VNĐ18.8 trillion ($817 million).

The province has eight industrial parks spread over a combined area of 1,194ha, and 70 per cent of their lands have been leased.

By 2020 the province plans to have 13 industrial parks with a total area of 4,686ha, and a border gate economic zone with a total area of 28,364ha.

By the end of July the province had 6,425 enterprises with a total registered capital of more than VNĐ53.5 trillion.

It has also attracted 185 foreign projects worth $850 million.

South Korea is one of the biggest foreign investors in the province with 81 projects worth $456 million.

Recently investors from Germany and Japan have also visited the province to study the feasibility of solar energy projects. — VNS