1:59:30 PM | 11/12/2007
How to boost investment attraction is an issue now mentioned more than ever in many important agendas of Lam Dong Province.
Up to now, Lam Dong Province has attracted more than 324 domestic projects and foreign-invested projects with total registered capital of nearly VND12,670 billion (US$791.9 million) and nearly US$217 million, respectively. Of total investment projects in Lam Dong, 104 projects have been licensed to invest in trade and tourism (43 per cent of total projects), 55 projects invested in agriculture and forestry (22.6 per cent), 56 projects in industry (23 per cent), 17 projects in hydro-power (7 per cent) and 11 projects for social affairs (4.5 per cent).
Investment projects are complying with the socio-economic development orientation of the province, contributing to transforming the economic structure and carrying out key projects of Lam Dong. Many operating projects have helped create stable jobs for local workers, improved living conditions for the population and increased provincial revenue. Especially, enterprises in the province have been devoted to carrying out investment projects, and the initial business results have been improved. The increase of investment after the mid-term meeting of the provincial committee of the Party has contributed to boosting economic growth in 2001 - 2005 to 10.7 per cent on average, and to over 17.8 per cent in 2006, doubling the average level of the country.
The initial achievements of investment attraction activities over the past time have proved and affirmed the orientation of the provincial party and authorities in building specific policies to attract investment and manage investment activities. These efforts aim to create an open environment to attract investors to Lam Dong. The province has paid proper attention to administrative reform in dealing with investment procedures in some industries; in which, administrative procedures are publicly announced, shortening procedure by five to ten days. 99 per cent of investment documents received at the one-door division of the province’s People’s Committee are processed on time.
However, so far, only 20.6 per cent of total licensed projects in the province have been carried out, and 12 per cent of projects have been put into operation. There are still a lot of shortcomings in investment attraction. One important factor in the investment environment in Lam Dong is that the majority of policies and mechanisms for investment focus attention on investment preferences, not on building an open and competitive investment environment. Delay in site clearance, compensation, site transfer, slow implementation of infrastructure projects, and unclear methods of investment in infrastructure in industrial parks and complexes seriously affect the progress rate of investment projects.
Most investors have expressed one desire: once their investment proposals are approved by local authorities, they should be facilitated to quickly carry out their projects in the shortest time and with a convenient infrastructure system, because each project is closely associated with opportunity and investment capital. Operating the project on time provides the opportunity for business to develop. When project implementation is delayed, businesses are under pressure, whether they are paying loan interest or tying up their own available capital for the project.
Xuan Long
Vietnamese
