Creating Most Favorable Investment Climate

With a strong determination to improve the investment and business environment, Long An is becoming one of the most attractive destinations for domestic and foreign investors. Vietnam Business Forum’s reporter has an interview with Mr. Huynh Van Son, Director of the Department of Planning and Investment of Long An Province. Manh Dung reports.

Could you please introduce outstanding investment attraction results of the province in recent years?

With a strategic geographic location, endowed with huge potential, strengths and an increasingly open and attractive investment environment, Long An has become a leading light in investment attraction in the region as well as the whole country.

In 2019 alone, the province attracted 1,026 FDI projects with registered capital of US$6,211 million and 1,923 domestic investment projects with registered capital of VND221,931 billion. To date, Long An province is home to 11,478 active enterprises with a total registered capital of VND304,369 billion. The Index Industrial Production increased by 15.11% over the same period.

At present, 38 countries and territories are investing in Long An province. Taiwan was the biggest foreign investor by both investment project and registered investment value, followed by China, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Thailand and the United States. The biggest recipients of FDI funds include textile and garment, footwear, animal feed, poultry feed and fish feed, food and beverage, and manufacturing industries. FDI projects are concentrated in key economic regions of the province bordering Ho Chi Minh City such as Duc Hoa, Ben Luc, Can Duoc, Can Giuoc and Tan An City. More than 50% of FDI projects are located in industrial zones. Large-scale FDI projects include Vina Eco Board, Sapporo, Kyodo Sojitz, Songwol Vina, Japfa Comfeed, Greenfeed and Lavie.

Long An province has also attracted many big domestic investors. For example, Becamex IDC Group - VSIP is planning to build a 3,045-ha industrial - urban - commercial service complex in Ben Luc district. Vingroup is planning about 4,000 ha in Binh Duc and Thanh Hoa communes, Ben Luc district and nearly 1,100 ha in Hau Nghia town and Tan My commune, Duc Hoa district for its projects. Ecoland Group (Ecopark Hung Yen) is planning its project on 6,000 ha in Thanh Loi and 1,000 ha in Luong Hoa commune, Ben Luc district. BRG Group surveyed and proposed five investment projects, including an 18-hole golf course, an entertainment complex, a commercial center, an urban area and a tourist area (58 ha); an export banana production project (100 ha); a high-yield rice growing and processing project (100 ha); and a solar power farm (50 ha). There are also many other large investment projects.

Would you be kind enough to tell us more about the remarkable contents of investment incentive policies?

Long An is currently the largest recipient of investment capital in the Mekong Delta region and the second largest tax collector in the region (after Can Tho City). The success in investment attraction in Long An comes from the following core factors:

First, the province well values local comparative advantages, timely seizes opportunities, sticks to the right direction, and develops industrial parks as a driving force for green and sustainable breakthrough development.

Second, administrative procedures are clear. The province adopts the single-window mechanism for settling administrative procedures and applies the electronic single-window system for public, transparent and equal settlement of administrative procedures for all economic sectors. All administrative procedures are carried out at only one place - the Public Administration Service Center. The Investment Promotion and Support Center will support investors with legal procedures (when required) and the latter do not have to worry too much about administrative procedures.

Third, the government sides with businesses, and creates friendly cooperative relations with countries where they come from, with many activities such as assigning officials to solve their difficulties, and organizing regular meetings by industry where they are involved or country where they come from.

Fourth, the province also steps up foreign investment promotion and enhances cooperation with foreign countries and localities. Every year, Long An sends working delegations to Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Germany, the United States and other countries to promote investment.

Fifth, Long An pays great attention to developing highly qualified human resources to meet development requirements in each stage. The province currently has nearly 900,000 people of working age, with over 80% graduating from high school. The province is carrying out a policy to encourage all economic sectors to participate in education and training with high incentives on land rent and taxes.

Needless to say, with its strategic geographic location, great potential, advantages and favorable natural conditions, Long An has favorable conditions to develop industry, urbanization and agriculture. At the same time, the investment environment is more and more open and attractive. All of the above factors have enabled Long An to attract investment flows and, in fact, the province has become a bright spot in attracting investment in the region and in the country as a whole.

With the goal of becoming a strong brand in investment attraction in Vietnam, what tasks will Long An province focus on in the coming time?

In 2020, the province will advocate reestablishing a working group assigned to facilitate ground clearance, a working group assigned to direct the implementation of major investment projects, and a team in charge of reviewing local investment projects to accelerate the progress of land compensation and site clearance, especially industrial park projects, to have more commercial land for new investment projects and regulate rental rates of industrial land for lease. The province will strive to have five new industrial zones in operation in 2020; intensify project inspection and review to promptly solve difficulties and obstacles in the way to accelerate the project progress; and adopt solutions to improve the investment and business environment in all aspects.

With its new missions, Long An continues to believe in the leadership of the Party, resolves to successfully achieve the set goals, and joins hands with the business community for joint development and prosperity.

Source: Vietnam Business Forum