Hai Phong Accomplishing Dual Goals, Creating Strong Effects

Hai Phong City has obtained remarkable development and great success in the 2016-2020 period, which are attributed to high determination and effort of the whole political system and entire people. Vietnam Business Forum has an interview with Mr. Nguyen Van Tung, Chairman of the City People's Committee, on this topic. Ha Thanh reports.

Could you briefly introduce Hai Phong City’s socioeconomic development results in the first 10 months of 2020?

In the first 10 months of 2020, Hai Phong City has strictly adhered to central guidance on COVID-19 pandemic prevention. For the time being, the city has no COVID-19 positive cases.

The recent months witnessed significant reduction in the number of foreign enterprises seeking investment opportunities in the city. However, we have still made efforts to improve the business investment environment to affirm its attractiveness to investors. With the decisive leadership of city leaders, we have achieved ‘dual goals’ while effectively controlling the COVID-19 pandemic, maintaining political stability, defense and security, social safety and order, advancing production and business activities, and completing major economic targets. The city has promptly allocated over VND368.3 billion to support people in difficulty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The city reported a GRDP growth of 11.39% in the first nine months, higher than the country’s growth. Other indicators also fared well, including the index of industrial production (IIP), domestic budget revenue and foreign direct investment (FDI) value.

These results came from the effort of the Party Committee, People's Council and People's Committee of Hai Phong City to follow the instructions of the Central Government, and the Prime Minister on measures for COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control. The city has spent VND1 trillion preventing the pandemic. Hai Phong was the first locality to establish interagency stations to control the contagion at entrance and exit gates and establish pandemic prevention groups in all villages and residential areas across the city.

During the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, the city's business investment environment continued to be improved. The city managed to reduce administrative procedures, increase the quality of online public services and help businesses reduce travel time for administrative procedures. In particular, the automatic customs clearance system and the automatic customs management system at seaports facilitate rapid import and export for businesses.

As for investment sectors, despite not being equipped with the National Online Investment Procedures System, the city's investment registration agency always supports investors and businesses when they prepare documents and carry out investment procedures through email box and postal services. Thereby, investors can carry out investment procedures even when they are still abroad, not present in Vietnam.

The city has strengthened investment promotion through many communication channels and introduced local advantages to investors such as: (i) Synchronously developed transportation and deep seaports, international airports and highways; (ii) Abundant and well-trained workforce; (iii) Well-invested technical infrastructure in economic zones and industrial zones; (iv) Stable tax policy, with many levels of incentives and reductions; (v) civilized and modern social infrastructure, available utility services for the community, investors and foreign experts among others.

What are the city’s highlights in improving the business investment environment and enhancing competitiveness?

Hai Phong City’s Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) in 2019 ranked 10th out of 63 provinces and cities, and 4th out of 11 provinces and cities in the Red River Delta, climbing six places over 2018. This was the second time the city stood among the Top 10 by PCI and had good economic governance quality. The city’s Public Administration Reform Index in 2019 reached 84.35 points, ranking 4th out of 63 provinces and cities. The Satisfaction Index of Public Administrative Services (SIPAS) in 2019 reached 92.22%, securing the second position out of 63 provinces and cities, up seven places against 2018.

In the first 10 months of 2020, Hai Phong City has issued all new and revised investment certificates online. Currently, 99% of enterprises conduct tax declarations electronically; 99.5% pay tax online; 100% receive VAT refund online; 99.99% declare customs procedures online; and 100% use digital signatures in tax declaration and electronic customs.

The total number of Level 4 online public services is 165, or 8.6% of the total, up 1.65% over the same period last year. The city has completed synchronization of the status of administrative procedure settlement from the electronic single-window system and online public services with the National Public Service Portal for citizens and enterprises to look up the status of administrative procedure settlement on the National Public Service Portal.

Currently, 100% of the city’s schools are applying electronic and non-cash payments for most of the payment contents. The city has accelerated electronic payment for electricity, water and social insurance bills. Currently, Hai Phong is piloting the collection of fees and charges for settlement of administrative procedures for some online public services on the City Online Public Service Portal, aimed to ensure connectivity with the National Public Service Portal.

Business support has been further promoted. The City People's Committee has issued and effectively carried out the Support Plan for Human Resource Development Training for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in 2020. The Department of Planning and Investment has enhanced support for business registration procedures and opened business registration accounts for people and businesses when they submit documents online.

For public investment capital, in 2020, the city has allocated VND12,407.9 billion for local public investment projects, including VND1,481.7 billion from the central budget and VND10,926.2 billion from the city’s budget. By the end of August 17, 2020, VND4,690.1 billion was disbursed, accounting for 37.8% of the plan assigned by the city (VND12,407.9 billion) and equaling 58.1% of the plan assigned by the Prime Minister (VND8,073.5 billion, including VND536.6 billion from the central budget and VND4,153.5 billion from the city’s budget).

On March 23, 2020, as soon as the COVID-19 pandemic began affecting the city’s socioeconomic development in general and investment construction in particular, the City People's Committee issued many guidance documents to push disbursement of public investment capital.

To make a breakthrough in PCI rankings, how are the city’s agencies and localities dealing with low-score sub-indices?

On July 29, 2020, the City People's Committee issued Plan 194/KH-UBND on PCI improvement for the year 2020-2021. This is a comprehensive plan that focuses on addressing two declining sub-indices and further improving eight other component indices to achieve better performance in 2020. The city has specifically concentrated on implementing five solutions as follows:

First, municipal and local agencies must carry out the PCI Improvement Plan, with high focus on the fields they are involved in. The PCI Improvement Plan must be further detailed by municipal and local agencies and localities which must have plans to support people and businesses to prepare and complete administrative records to increase the success rate of people submitting valid records the first time and reduce as much as possible the rate of amendments and supplements.

Second, municipal and local agencies must assess the satisfaction of people and businesses at the City Electronic Information Portal and at their single-window divisions.

Third, they must equip public employees with communication skills, especially those working at single-window divisions, to improve service quality for people and businesses carrying out administrative procedures.

Fourth, they need to accelerate the construction of e-government in the city.

Fifth, they must increase communications on improving the investment and business environment and deeply enhancing the city’s competitiveness in order to boost the image and position of Hai Phong City in the doi moi (renovation) period.

Thank you very much!

Source: Vietnam Business Forum