Bac Ninh Strives to Enhance Investment and Business Environment

Bac Ninh needs to fully restructure its governance to support larger development and its goal of becoming a centrally governed city before 2030. Bac Ninh is creating a dynamic and efficient two-tier government focused on serving businesses. The 2026-2030 Administrative Reform Plan strengthens the shift from procedural reform to institutional reform and improved management capacity, which are essential for enhancing the investment and business environment in an increasingly competitive region.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man witnesses the Bac Ninh Provincial People’s Committee signing a cooperation agreement on digital transformation

Foundation and acceleration

Before the merger, both Bac Ninh and Bac Giang were known for strong administrative reforms and high provincial competitiveness. Their consistently topped the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) and Public Administration Reform (PAR) reflected ongoing efforts to streamline procedures, modernize management, and make government more responsive to citizens and businesses. This solid foundation allows the new Bac Ninh to enter its next phase of development with greater momentum, building on an established platform rather than starting from scratch.

After the merger, Bac Ninh expanded to 99 communes and wards, creating a more multi-centered development space and significantly increasing demand for public services. Adopting a two-tier government model brought both challenges and opportunities for the province to redesign governance for greater efficiency and cohesion. Intermediate agencies were reviewed and streamlined, and coordination between provincial and local levels was standardized, leading to faster processes and clearer accountability.

Bac Ninh remains committed to the philosophy of a government that serves businesses. Timeframes for processing applications, responsibilities of leaders, and channels for receiving and responding to business feedback have been designed to be transparent and consistent, without bottlenecks at any intermediate level. This approach produces two clear effects: increased policy predictability and significantly lower compliance costs for investors. In the context of increasingly competitive local environments, particularly in the Northern Midlands and Red River Delta, this governance advantage becomes a key differentiator in attracting investment, especially strategic FDI and high-tech enterprises.

Enhancing the business environment

The 2026-2030 Administrative Reform Plan shows Bac Ninh’s firm commitment to improving governance. The focus of reform has moved from simplifying procedures to strengthening institutions, enhancing management quality, building a professional workforce, and developing digital government. This approach supports the province’s goal of becoming a special-class city and a centrally governed urban center.

On the institutional reform front, Bac Ninh is reviewing regulations related to investment, construction, land management, high-tech industry, and trade and services. The goal is to establish a consistent and transparent legal framework, minimize discrepancies across government levels, and ensure long-term predictability for businesses. This is especially critical as the province develops high-tech industry, green industry, and the digital economy, where stable and coherent institutions are prerequisites for attracting global value chains.

Civil service reform is also central. Bac Ninh is building a cadre of officials with digital capabilities, modern management skills, high ethical standards, and a strong service mindset. Measures such as salary reform, results-based evaluation, and digital monitoring of public service performance are implemented to increase motivation, reduce inefficiency, and improve service quality.

The most significant breakthrough is the development of e-government and digital government. Integrated data connectivity, full digitization of administrative procedures, high-level online public services, and data-driven governance models save time, increase transparency, and reduce administrative costs for businesses. In a two-tier government system, digital government becomes a key tool to ensure unified operations across a large, densely populated area with multiple major industrial zones.

These initiatives are positioning Bac Ninh to enter a new development phase with more modern, transparent, and business-friendly governance. Institutional reform and enhanced management capacity are thus critical pillars for improving the business environment, attracting new investment, and realizing the province’s vision of becoming a centrally governed city before 2030.

By Ngo Khuyen, Vietnam Business Forum