After five years of construction and development, the Vung Ang Economic Zone Authority has effectively promoted its role in public administration reform, investment attraction, planning, infrastructure construction, site clearance and policymaking.
Ha Tinh province-based Vung Ang Economic Zone was established according to the Prime Minister’s Decision 72/2006/QD-TTg dated April 3, 2006. With a total area of 22,781 ha, the economic zone lies on nine southern communes of Ky Anh district. The investment for developing Vung Ang Economic Zone into a northern central economic zone to open a new sea-approaching gateway and to prop up economic development on East - West and North -South corridors was approved by the Prime Minister and governed by Decision 1353/QD-TTg dated September 23, 2008.
Overall objectives are to develop Vung Ang into a multi-industry economic zone. Licensed projects include a metallurgical industry centre associated with Thach Khe iron ore (544 million tonnes); a thermal power centre (4,800 MW); a Vung Ang - Son Duong port complex; Vung Ang new urban zone; and coastal resorts. Ha Tinh province will speed up the construction and development of Vung Ang Economic Zone together with other economic zones in central region to form a chain of closely linked economic zones and gradually become a growth nucleus and an important centre of international exchange in a bid to expand the northern central market, become a bridge with Laos and northeast Thailand; create jobs and step up training, restructure the labour force, and improve the quality of local human resources; and effectively exploit advantages of natural conditions, geographical, political and economic positions in domestic and international trade and services to accelerate socioeconomic development in Ha Tinh in particular and the entire country and the region.
Knowing that administrative reform is an important step to bring Vung Ang Economic Zone to a new high, the authority is determined to complete six fields: institutional reform, organizational structure reform, personnel upgrading, public financial reform, administrative modernisation, and administrative reform management. As a result, the authority has seen a lot of progress. Particularly, administrative procedures in the service of investors and enterprises are finalised quickly and effectively. It has completed the second phase of public administration reform with 135 procedures streamlined, and is carrying out the third phase. The authority also applies the ISO 9001 - 2008 quality management system.
Under close direction from the Provincial Party Committee and Provincial People's Committee, coupled with the support of Ky Anh district and affected communes, land clearance and compensation are going very smoothly. After more than five years, more than 3,200 households with 14,000 inhabitants have been relocated to new resettlement zones. Land compensation is guaranteed to be fair and accurate; thus, it gains public sympathy and support. Notably, Formosa is reported to set the “national record” in site clearance progress, with more than 10,000 residents relocated. This work strengthens the trust of investors in Ha Tinh province. Many provinces and cities have come to learn from the local experience.
Vung Ang Economic Zone has issued investment certifications and business registration certificates to 103 enterprises with a combined registered capital of nearly US$12 billion, including 57 with investment certifications (24 companies are foreigners.) To date, some completed projects are being operated very effectively, such as Vung Ang oil and gas depot, northern central LPG depot and Vung Ang port. Underway projects and programmes consist of Vung Ang 1 thermal power plant (1,200 MW), Formosa steel complex, Tau Voi Lake tourist site, etc. Many large-scale investment projects are completing documents for certification, including a petrochemical refinery with annual output of 16 million tonnes (US$12.47 billion), Thach Khe iron mill complex, and Vung Ang 2 thermal power plant.
The authority has completed planning, scaling and mapping. The planning, with a scale of 1:2,000 and 1:500, has been widely introduced to investors.
From 2006 to 2010, Vung Ang Economic Zone Authority raised VND4,450 billion for technical and social infrastructure construction, infrastructure and social service projects and compensation for site clearance and construction of resettlement. It has disbursed more than VND4,000 billion.
The continuous collective efforts of officials, civil servants and workers in the processing of constructing and developing Vung Ang Economic Zone over the past five years have been highly rated and recognised. It is awarded diplomas of merit from the Ministry of Planning and Investment and Ha Tinh People’s Committee every year. In 2009, it was presented the certificate of commendation by the Prime Minister. In 2010, it was awarded Emulation Flags and other titles from the Government, ministries and agencies. Especially, in recognition of five-year achievements, the authority was conferred the Third Grade Labour Order by the State President.
To achieve its plans and tasks like making Vung Ang Economic Zone a third-grade urban zone by 2015 and attaining revenues of more than VND2,500 billion, the Vung Ang Economic Zone Authority fully understands its heavy tasks. Its ongoing central tasks are to timely apply Party and State resolutions and directives; adapt to State management functions in the economic zone and industrial zones; step up public administration reform; mobilise all available resources for technical infrastructure development in Vung Ang Economic Zone, two affiliated industrial zones, and resettlement zones; coordinate with competent authorities and units to effectively train and supply the workforce; support investors to step up the progress of implementing projects; court resource supports of the Government, ministries and provincial administration for infrastructure construction; propagate the potential and advantages of the economic zone and affiliated industrial zones to attract investors; and complete infrastructure works like traffic, water supply and waste disposal systems.
From what has been achieved in the past five years, it is asserted that provincial resources, potential and advantages are being tapped on the right track. With the participation of the entire political system and the consensus of the people, the Vung Ang Economic Zone is expected to give a facelift to the province and realise all objectives assigned by the provincial authorities to play a more active role in “developing Ha Tinh into a province with developed industry, agriculture and service by 2015.”
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