"In the period from 2011 to 2015, Ho Chi Minh City focuses on restructuring the economy, changing the growth model, and raising the respective proportions of industry and service sectors to 42 per cent and 57 per cent of the city’s GDP. The city underlines the increase of added value of high-tech exports and hi-tech applications to 30 per cent of the GDP. To achieve these objectives, the city defines that the development of hi-tech and supporting industries is the key and the city will draw investment capital into these,” said Mr Le Manh Ha, Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee at a recent seminar entitled Promoting investment for hi-tech supporting industries 2013” in HCM City. The event was organised by the Ho Chi Minh City Investment and Trade Promotion Centre (ITPC) in collaboration with Saigon Hi-tech Park (SHTP).
ITPC Director Pho Nam Phuong said many industries in HCM City need subcontracting industries to develop. For example, garment, textile and footwear industries need to develop auxiliary products to serve export-oriented production, attract all available resources and economic sectors to invest in supporting industries to reduce reliance on foreign sources and edge up competitiveness of apparels, textiles and footwear on the market. Electronics and information industries must train human resources to master advanced technologies and facilitate foreign investors to manufacture parts and components. And, manufacturing and engineering sectors need to focus on developing more detailed products to reduce imports and boost exports. Ms Le Bich Loan, Deputy Director of SHTP Management Board, said SHTP now has 56 projects with a total investment capital of US$2.2 billion, of which FDI projects account for US$1.8 billion. They generate 17,000 jobs and pay VND100 billion a year to the State Budget.
She added that the city’s hi-tech supporting industry will exert a pull on investment capital three fields, namely microelectronics, precision engineering and automation, and new energy and new materials, with the aim of promoting the development of key hi-tech industries, lifting up the level of human resources, raising the ratio of locally sources parts in exports, boosting up exports and enhancing enterprises’ capacity in global supply chain. HCM City strives to raise localisation ratio in hi-tech products to 25 per cent by 2015 and 40 per cent by 2020. Export value is expected to reach US$10 billion in 2015.
Stemming from the above purposes, hi-tech supporting businesses across the country will be placed in the centre before making any policies on incentives and supports for them when they join supply chains of hi-tech companies in the city. Specifically, to encourage hi-tech supporting industry projects, SHTP will connect to the Ho Chi Minh City Financial Investment Company (HFIC), the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), and the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) to arrange loans for hi-tech supporting industrial projects the city is looking for and the loan stays within VND100 billion per project. The credit validity will not be more than seven years and the lending rate is the weighted rate of 12-month deposits at four largest commercial banks, namely BIDV, Agribank, Vietcombank and Vietinbank. SHTP will work with the HCM City Department of Planning and Investment to evaluate registered hi-tech supporting industry projects and then submit to the Municipal People’s Committee to interest rate subsidy.
The city will has other incentives like tax, land rent, soft credit, credit support, training support, and information support for hi-tech supporting industry projects inside SHTP. Their products will be used for finalising products. They will be also supported for building production factories.
Hong Hanh
Vietnamese
