Danang: The Appeal of a Young and Dynamic City

In the first six months of 2012, Danang City attracted 17 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects with total investment capital of US$71.6 million and allowed nine existing projects to add investment capital of US$40.85 million. Newly licensed projects mainly registered to operate in services, construction and infrastructure sectors. Notably, Danang Information Technology Park Development Co., Ltd invested US$32 million in a project on the construction and operation of Danang Information Technology Park.

 

To date, the city has 223 foreign direct investment projects with a combined registered capital of US$3.26 billion, of which 108 projects have been put into operation with total disbursed capital of US$1.57 billion, equal to nearly 50 per cent of total registered investment.

 

Like other localities in the country, Danang is also affected by the world economic crisis and FDI capital attraction is more difficult. However, its FDI results are very impressive because Danang is a young and dynamic city. In the past years, Danang has made outstanding achievements in socioeconomic development and become a green, clean and attractive destination for tourists and investors in central Vietnam.

 

The city has focused on helping businesses address difficulties with land, employment, administrative procedures and other issues. Danang has also enhanced investment promotion with countries such as Japan, South Korea and the United States. Periodically, the municipal government organises meetings with investors to listen to their opinions and recommendations and resolve their complaints.

 

The governing People's Committee of Danang City has issued policies on investment incentives and supports for domestic and foreign investors in Danang Hi-tech Park. According to regulations, two subjects granted exemption and reduction in land rents are investors in infrastructure construction, production and service projects in the high-tech park, and investors in housing construction projects in the high-tech park. Policies applicable to investors with infrastructure construction, production and service business projects have been issued.

 

The city is responsible for building the construction ground and shared infrastructure in the high-tech park, including information and telecom system, traffic system, public utilities, water supply network, and wastewater treatment system, for investors.

 

Danang is the major city in central Vietnam and one of five largest cities in the country. The city has the largest business community in central Vietnam and always leads the region in the provincial competitiveness index (PCI). It also leads the nation in ICT readiness.

 

Danang is the only city in Vietnam and one of 10 ASEAN cities to be awarded the title “Environmentally Sustainable ASEAN City 2011”. As a typical city of Vietnam, Danang was one of six Asian cities to be selected for a six-episode television series called “Boom Town Asia” by Channel NewsAsia (CNA) in February 2012.

Danang is the eastern terminus of the East - West Economic Corridor (EWEC), serving as the gateway to the Pacific Ocean and the port of cargo export and import for the potentially untapped hinterland of Laos, Northeast Thailand, Myanmar and Central Vietnam. This is an important advantage for Danang to promote economic exchange with Mekong Sub-region countries and economic zones in the Ganges River region (India), and the East - West Economic Corridor (EWEC) - a 1,450 km long road linking the coast of the Indian Ocean and the coast of the Pacific Ocean, starting at the port city of Mawlamyine (Myanmar) and ending at the port city of Danang (Vietnam), passing 13 provinces and cities in four Mekong Sub-region countries (Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam).

 

Danang is the gateway of the East - West Economic Corridor with convenient traffic systems for goods circulation and passenger mobility. The city thus holds huge potential and advantages for tourism, investment and cross-border trade development, socioeconomic condition improvement, and regional cooperation expansion.

Danang has developed infrastructure systems, including international airports, deepwater ports, trunk roads and the North - South railway; and support services like finance, banking insurance and logistics to meet the development requirements of business, investment and tourism activities.

 

Danang has implemented the “single-entry” procedure for project investment certification. At present, projects outside industrial parks will work with the Danang Investment Promotion Centre and projects inside industrial zones will apply at Danang Export Processing and Industrial Zones Authority.

 

Together with transparent procedures, the city annually requests the Department of Home Affairs to review and inspect the administrative reform progress in all departments and agencies. The Department of Planning and Investment has seriously performed administrative procedure reform, created favourable conditions for investors, and shortened the time for investment certification.