An Giang Mobilises Internal Resources for Socioeconomic Development

 

According to a report from the An Giang Provincial People's Committee, the province’s GDP growth rate averaged 8.63 per cent in the 2011-2015, with an absolute value of VND8,640 billion added to gross domestic product (GDP). The economic structure was shifted in a positive pattern, with the service sector accounting for 60.29 per cent of the economy, the agricultural sector accounting for 27.11 per cent, and the industrial - construction sector accounting for 12.60 per cent.

 

In particular, the agricultural sector focused on applying technical measures to rice production, selecting high-quality rice varieties and restructuring production by expanding large field models. The province’s rice output now exceeds 4 million tonnes a year. In addition, the province concentrated on stabilising the catfish industry by decreasing the output and increasing the production of other species, while improving production quality and chain links to raise aquatic output to 300,000 tonnes. Moreover, An Giang harvests over 900,000 tonnes of vegetables a year produced with safe and high-tech applications.

 

These results will be further promoted in the coming period as An Giang province advocated effectively executing Resolution 09-NQ on smart agricultural development to 2020, with a vision to 2030, with the aim of enhancing the value of agricultural products with eight product groups: rice, fishery, livestock, vegetable, edible mushroom - medicinal mushroom, ornamental tree, flower, fruit tree and medicinal plant. Accordingly, the province will focus on developing high-tech agricultural production areas; research and select high-quality, disease-resistant and climate-adaptive rice varieties; continue to speed up crop restructuring to enhance efficiency and achieve rapid growth. An Giang will concentrate on investing in irrigation systems in production areas and encourage people to farm high-value livestock and crops.

 

In addition to agriculture, An Giang province will actively unlock potential and advantages in trade, service and tourism. Trade and service continue to develop steadily. Total retail value was estimated at VND62,784.5 billion in the first nine months of 2016, up 12.7 per cent year on year. Tourist arrivals to the province are on the rise. The province welcomed 6.3 million tourists in the period, up 5.6 per cent over the same period of 2015, and tourism revenue was projected at VND1,660 billion, up 23.8 per cent year on year. These will be driving forces for An Giang province to further execute practical solutions to achieve growth targets from now to the end of the year. While supporting businesses to enhance production and business performances and develop the market, An Giang province will further strengthen tourism advertisement and introduction in various forms and invest in upgrading tourist attractions, local festivals and tourism services. It will promote tourism in major related events such as National Tourism Year in Phu Quoc - Kien Giang province and Via Ba Chua Xu Festival in 2016.

 

Defining its local strengths, An Giang province has paid particular attention to improving business and investment environment to draw investment capital into potential fields. The province has issued action plans to enforce the Resolution of the 12^th National Party Congress and the Resolution of the 10^th Provincial Party Congress, which underline the construction of groundbreaking plans for investment attraction into agriculture, tourism and service.

 

Mr Vuong Binh Thanh, Chairman of An Giang Provincial People’s Committee, said, with the above plans, the province advocates focusing on intensive agricultural development; attracting investment resources into agriculture and rural areas; mobilising investment resources for tourism infrastructure development to turn tourism into a key economic sector; offering tax and land rent incentives to draw corporate investment, with a priority given to investment in Long Xuyen - Nui Sam - Nui Cam tourist attractions; and renovating investment promotion activities, developing long-term investment promotion strategies, and hiring consultants to define provincial investment and cooperation priorities to envisage investment promotion activities.

 

Besides, the province has made efforts and taken measures to support enterprises to overcome difficulties and challenges when investing and doing business. Specifically, in March 2016, An Giang decided to set up the Business Support Committee in order to quickly identify difficulties and obstacles facing enterprises to seek the best solutions. The province also issued plans for improving the business investment environment and enhancing competitiveness; action programs for business support and development; regulations on electricity access, infrastructure construction licensing and land-based property ownership registration, in order to make An Giang a favourable investment and business destination for enterprises and investors.

 

Public administration reform is a very important factor for An Giang province to assert its magnetism to investors. And, administrative procedure reform is always defined as a groundbreaking stage to motivate economic and social development. The one-stop single-window mechanism has been effectively applied to administrative procedures to raise publicity, transparency, modernity and professionalism, provide the most favourable conditions for citizens, and fulfil requirements and tasks in the era of industrialisation, modernisation and international integration.

 

Chairman Thanh said that the province’s major challenge, however, is how public administration reform is carried out to deal with existing limitations and weaknesses, promote local potential and advantages in socioeconomic development to make An Giang a leading province in the Mekong Delta key economic zone.

 

In this regard, An Giang province has introduced some specific measures such as raising awareness and responsibility of Party committees, government offices, civil servants and people in administrative reform; renovating contents and methods of implementation; associating public administration reform with adopted programmes, plans and objectives; raising the quality of administrative organs and civil servants engaged in advising on public administration reform; strengthening the leadership of the Party and government at all tiers; drawing on practical experience for better performance in the future; and promoting the role of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, social unions and people in supervising operations of State organs and public employees.

 

We believe that these measures will help raise the public administration of An Giang province to a new level with more effective operation and management, to successfully achieve socioeconomic goals and indicators in the coming period.