Thủ Thiêm New Urban Area in HCM City. City authorities have urged agencies to speed the implementation of a number of long-delayed investment projects, mostly property projects, including Thủ Thiêm New Urban Area. VNA/VNS Photo Quang Nhựt

HCM CITY — The chairman of HCM City People’s Committee Nguyễn Thành Phong has urged agencies to speed up implementation of a number of investment projects, mostly property projects that have been delayed for long periods. 

Speaking yesterday at a meeting reviewing the city’s socio-economic development in the first four months of the year, Phong attributed the problem to a lack of capital and administrative procedures. 

The delayed projects include Korea-based Lotte Group’s US$900-million eco-urban complex in the Thủ Thiêm New Urban Area in District 2, according to Phong. 

Another project, Sài Gòn Sports City, Keppel Land’s first township development in Việt Nam, has received cleared land, but has not begun implementation because of administrative procedures. 

Phong urged the Department of Construction to remove any difficulty for the projects so that they could start construction.

He cited other delayed projects such as rubbish-burning projects and a project to build an international exhibition and convention centre in Thủ Thiêm in District 2, among others.  

Phong criticised agencies for causing challenges through complicated administrative procedures for investors, causing delays for the projects in the last four months.

He urged the Department of Construction to review licences for construction to speed up the delayed projects. 

Phong also said a number of affected residents in the Bình Quới Thanh Đa area in Bình Thạnh District had been complaining about problems caused by the Bình Quới-Thanh Đa urban area project which had been delayed for more than 26 years. 

Regarding the 4.3 ha of land outside the planning boundary of the Thủ Thiêm New Urban Area project, which was cited by a Government Inspectorate inspection, Phong said the PM had asked the city’s People’s Council to compensate the affected residents. 

For 124 real estate projects that have been allowed to resume operations after inspections, Phong has asked agencies to remove any difficulties for the real estate enterprises.

The People’s Committee also said at the meeting that it would continue to help enterprises export goods, and develop markets; and remove difficulties through business dialogues between city leaders and enterprises. 

The city will also implement a project to develop the supporting industry by 2020, and improve the quality of tourism products and services. The first phase of the project to build a smart city by 2025 will also begin soon.

Lê Thị Huỳnh Mai, director of the city’s Department of Planning and Investment, said in the first four months the city’s total retail sales of goods and services revenue reached VNĐ377 trillion (US$16.15 billion), up 12.5 per cent compared to the same period last year. 

Of the number, total revenue of tourism reached more than VNĐ50.6 trillion in the period. 

Total state budget revenue reached more than VNĐ134.111 trillion, up 6.07 per cent over the same period last year.

Under a programme to support enterprises, a total of more than VNĐ10 trillion was disbursed to 1,827 customers. The city during the period had 13,094 newly licensed enterprises with total registered capital of VNĐ211.691 trillion, of which real estate businesses accounted for 32.7 per cent. 

Recently, HCM City organised a conference to call for more than US$53 billion in investment for 210 projects in transport infrastructure, education, healthcare, tourism, trade and services, and sport and tourism.

As of the end of last year, more than 100 countries and territories had invested in HCM City with 8,112 projects. Last year, FDI in the city reached $7.07 billion, up more than 7 per cent compared to 2017, accounting for 22 per cent of the country’s total FDI. — VNS