KHÁNH HÒA — The central coastal province of Khánh Hòa has seen considerable development in recent times, which is partly attributable to its three sea bays – Nha Trang, Cam Ranh and Vân Phong.
Nha Trang Bay has made the city of the same name famous for tourism and as such, become the centre of Khánh Hòa Province.
Meanwhile, Cam Ranh Bay plays an important role in terms of national defence and security. Furthermore, the northern Cam Ranh peninsula tourism area is also making strides towards becoming a national tourism site.
Located in the north of Khánh Hòa, Vân Phong Bay has become a key economic zone of the locality. However, its impact on local economic development remains limited.
Hoàng Đình Phi, head of the management board of the Vân Phong Economic Zone, said the area has attracted more than 150 investment projects with total registered capital exceeding US$4 billion.
Of these, 42 projects have specialised in shipbuilding, seaport construction, aquaculture, and tourism services.
The zone contributes about VNĐ4.8 trillion ($206.4 million) to the State budget each year, generating stable jobs for over 6,000 labourers, Phi said, citing several outstanding projects such as Hyundai Vinashin and the Ninh Thủy Industrial Park.
However, most of the projects are located in the south of Vân Phong Bay, leaving room for potential as the strength of the bay’s northern side remains untapped.
With 46,000ha of water surface area and an average depth of 20-30m, Vân Phong Bay boasts several favourable conditions for the development of international seaports, logistics services, and tourism and maritime urban areas meeting international standards.
Hòn Gốm Peninsula and the islands of Hòn Lớn and Điệp Sơn have the potential to house large-scale leisure and entertainment projects.
The Bắc Vân Phong (Northern Vân Phong) area sits near the intersection of major maritime routes – such as Europe-North Asia, Australia-Northeast Asia, and Southeast Asia-Northeast Asia – and serves as a gateway to the East Sea of the Central Highlands in particular and the Indochinese Peninsula in general.
For this reason, the Van Phong Economic Zone is targeted to become a gateway to the sea and part of cooperation along the East-West and North-South economic corridors under Decision No 1353/QD-TTg, dated September 23, 2008.
Acknowledging the favourable infrastructure of the Bắc Vân Phong area in terms of transport, water, electricity, and telecommunications, foreign investors have proposed developing the area into a special administrative-economic zone.
During its regular meeting in November 2016, the Government agreed on the principles for the establishment of three special administrative-economic zones, namely in Vân Đồn in the northern province of Quảng Ninh, Bắc Vân Phong in Khánh Hòa, and Phú Quốc in the Mekong Delta province of Kiên Giang.
Opinions of voters, the general public, various organisations, experts and scientists are being collected for the draft Law on Special Administrative-Economic Zone.
During its fifth meeting, the sixth People’s Council of Khánh Hòa province approved a resolution on a project for the establishment of the Bắc Vân Phong special administrative-economic zone, which covers the entire Vạn Ninh District with an area of 111,000ha and a population of over 128,000 people.
The zone prioritises sectors such as IT, electronics, and precision mechanics; seaports; tourism and hotels; and commercial and financial centres.
Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Lê Đức Vinh said the zone will require an estimated VNĐ53 trillion ($2.2 billion) by 2025 for technical infrastructure, VNĐ46.5 trillion ($1.9 billion) for social infrastructure, VNĐ15 trillion ($645 million) for land clearance, and VNĐ80 billion ($3.4 million) for planning.
It’s hoped that the zone will yield breakthroughs in Khánh Hòa’s development. — VNS