Planning of Mekong Delta Adjusted

According to the Decision, the scale and scope of adjusted regulations include all the administrative boundaries of Can Tho and 12 provinces: Long An, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Dong Thap, Vinh Long, Tra Vinh, Hau Giang, An Giang, Soc Trang, Kien Giang, Bac Lieu and Ca Mau. The planning area is extended to about 40,604.7 kilometres. The current population of the region in 2013 is about 17.3 million.

 

The adjusted target is to raise the role and position of the Mekong Delta to the national and regional level. Development of the Mekong River Delta is on the basis of cooperating, sharing and linking the driving forces, opportunities for development as well as balancing urban and rural development, protecting the environment and characteristics of the landscapes of the Mekong River basin, and guaranteeing the security and defense. The regional development is adopted based on the strategies of sustainable development, green growth and adaptation to climate change. Besides, the plan aims to build a modern comprehensive infrastructure systems and social infrastructure of the region, enabling the municipality to continue its nuclear role to create motivation for the development of the areas in terms of economics, culture and society.

 

Regarding the nature, the construction of the Mekong River Delta contributes importantly to the key areas of food production, fisheries, fruits of the country as well as ensures the national food security and export of agricultural and fisheries for the world market. Besides, the area is the national centre of agricultural products, processing industry, fisheries, energy industry, and supporting industry for agriculture. The Mekong River Delta is also the international centre of services, ecotourism at the lower Mekong region as well as acted as an important strategic position on security and defense.

 

The adjustments in the planning require analysis and assessment of the condition of natural phenomena, including natural conditions, natural resources and the humanities; besides, it includes the evaluation on the characteristics of the river Mekong Delta such as the scenery along the Tien River and Hau River, the East Sea, West Sea, ecological zones, wetlands, national parks, and nature conservation areas.

 

In addition, the adjusted plan will have some assessment related to impacts of climate change and sea level rise and flooding on the development of Mekong region; moreover, the plan also includes evaluation on the status of regional socio-economic development, urban systems and rural residential areas, land use, spaces for agriculture and forestry, fisheries, urban areas, industrial zones, tourism conservation of natural scenery, social infrastructure, technical infrastructure and the environment.

 

The mission of re-planning requires forecasts for regional development, development model and the spatial structure, which determines the context of national and international development, giving the analysis and assessment of the role, status and regional relations, the dynamics and potential development of the Mekong Delta and proposing the development perspectives with vision by 2050 as well as strategic objectives and regional development.

 

According to the decision of the Prime Minister, the proposed planning needs to be adjusted based on the partition function which categorized the functions based on the basis of key areas of the Mekong Delta, the areas along the Tien river, Hau river and transition zone to the Ho Chi Minh City.

 

The orientation to distribute the urban system is adjusted based on the geography of Can Tho, which is the nuclear dynamics of urban development areas, the sub-regional urban centers, urban systems along the urban economic corridors.

 

Orientations for the development of rural residential concentration are consistent with natural characteristics, production and the model of new rural construction; the adjustments of the orientations of the distribution of industrial concentration are associated with urban areas and the economic corridors of the national and regional urban areas, centers of energy and infrastructure hub of the region. Besides, those ensure the efficient use of the advantages of raw materials and human resources.

 

Adjusting the orientations of the distribution of eco-tourism is on the basis of exploitation of natural resources and ecological landscape along the Tien and Hau rivers, Dong Thap Muoi's wetland ecological zones, the region of mangrove ecosystem of Ca Mau peninsula, the U Minh National Park, and Phu Quoc; besides, it forms the national and international tourist center, regional tourism clusters, local tourist routes, national and international travel routes, tourism product, cultural and historical tourism and tourist resort.

 

There is adjustment of the orientations of distribution of agricultural, forestry and aqua-cultural areas, forming of the areas of intensive agricultural production such as rice, fruits, vegetables, high-tech agricultural zones, urban agriculture, aquaculture regional focus, biodiversity conservation of natural landscape, and characterized ecological zones.

 

The key economic region in the Mekong River Delta will be the major energy centers of the country with three power centers of O Mon, Ca Mau, Kien Luong to supply the gas from the southwest gas fields. This aims to reach the economic growth of the region of around 10.5 percent per year in the period from 2016 to 2020 and per capita income of about US$2,470 in 2015 and about US$4,400 in 2020. Phu Quoc Island will become a centre of international trade and the Southern Lower Mekong.

It is estimated that the total capital investment in the development of key economic region of Mekong Delta is close to VND1,600 trillion.