Strong Investment Fuels Phu Tho’s Double-Digit Growth

Amid intensifying competition, Phu Tho province has recorded strong investment attraction results as early as the first quarter of 2026. These growth figures reflect both the appeal of its investment environment and the effectiveness of a focused investment promotion strategy, helping build a foundation for sustainable growth in the coming period.

Phu Tho is reinforcing a foundation for strong breakthroughs in the 2026-2030 period

Capital inflows surge, boosting investment appeal

In the early months of 2026, the province’s investment landscape showed several positive signs. Total foreign direct investment (FDI) reached approximately US$704 million, more than seven times higher than the same period; meanwhile, domestic direct investment (DDI) exceeded VND9.6 trillion, equal to 139.7% of the same period last year. This reflects strong growth at a time when global capital flows are shifting rapidly and becoming more cautious.

One of the key factors behind this result is a proactive approach to investment promotion. The province has gone beyond presenting its potential, focusing on supporting site surveys, location selection, partner connections, and working closely with businesses throughout the project research process.

In addition, maintaining political and social stability, along with efforts to reform administrative procedures and improve transparency in planning, land availability, and investment procedures, has helped strengthen investor confidence. This is a “soft” factor but plays an important role as investors increasingly value stability and predictability in the business environment.

Notably, the province’s investment attraction results are not by chance but the result of systematic preparation. The province has developed a list of priority projects, prepared investment promotion materials and data, and strengthened connections with organizations and enterprises both domestically and internationally.

Toward sustainable growth

Beyond scale, investment inflows into Phu Tho are showing a positive shift in quality. The province’s investment promotion efforts focus on high value-added sectors such as processing and manufacturing, supporting industries, industrial park infrastructure, logistics, trade and services, and tourism.

This direction aligns with the goal of restructuring the economy toward a more modern model, gradually reducing reliance on labor-intensive sectors while improving participation in global value chains.

Alongside attracting new investors, Phu Tho has placed strong focus on “on-site” investment promotion. Promptly addressing issues related to investment procedures, land, construction, environment, and site clearance not only speeds up project progress but also creates a positive spillover effect, helping attract additional investors.

However, to maintain growth momentum and improve the quality of investment attraction, Phu Tho still faces several challenges. Its industrial park infrastructure, logistics, and regional connectivity in some areas remain uneven; the availability of cleared land is limited; and the quality of the workforce, particularly highly skilled labor, has yet to fully meet the requirements of modern industries.

In addition, as competition for investment intensifies, reaching large corporations, strategic investors, and global supply chains requires new and more in-depth approaches.

Another point to consider is the need for digital transformation in investment promotion. Building a unified, regularly updated data system that can be shared across agencies will improve information delivery, shorten administrative processing time, and enhance transparency, which is increasingly valued by investors.

As the goal of double-digit GRDP growth places high demands on resource mobilization, maintaining and improving the effectiveness of investment attraction will remain a key lever. If it effectively captures opportunities from shifting capital flows and continues to improve the investment environment, Phu Tho will have a solid basis for strong breakthroughs in the 2026–2030 period.

By Le Hien, Vietnam Business Forum