Binh Dinh Province Developing from Potential

In recent years, Binh Dinh province has expanded cooperative ties to develop its economy and improve competitiveness and integration, generating positive efficiencies and making a breakthrough in exploiting potentials for development. On the occasion of the New Year 2006, Vietnam Business Forum held an interview with Vu Hoang Ha, Chairman of the Binh Dinh People’s Committee.

 

The socio-economy of Binh Dinh province in last five years has gone on track with national development, improving from year to year. The province has attained average GDP growth of 9 per cent per annum. GDP in 2005 was 1.54 times higher than the figure of 2000. The GDP per capita increased from US$220 in 2000 to more than US$360 in 2005. Economic structure is going in the right direction. The agricultural sector registered a growth rate of 5.7 per cent, industry 16 per cent and service and tourism 10 per cent. State budget revenues increased strongly and always surpassed the initial plan. In 2005, the revenue coffers reached VND 1.2 trillion. The scale and quality of the education and training sector has been improved. However, economic restructuring is proceeding slowly with labourers in agro-forestry sectors accounting for 70 per cent of the province’s population in 2005.

 

Our location at a great distance from main economic hubs is a disadvantage for the province. For this reason, Binh Dinh has to fully exploit its potentials, internal strength, and advantages, and cooperate with other provinces to boost economic growth effectively and stably.

 

Defined as one of five central coastal provinces in the key economic zones in the Central and Highlands region, Binh Dinh expects this is an important condition to help the province grow. Binh Dinh will endeavour to develop sharply to meet growth criteria by 2010, with annual GDP growth of 12-13 per cent, GDP per capita doubling from 2005 to US$800, meanwhile the proportion to GDP of industry and construction is from 37-38 per cent, agro-forestry 27-28 per cent and service 34 -35 per cent. 

 

Binh Dinh will take urgent measures to foster industrial development in order to boost economic growth, speeding up economic restructuring so as to shift to produce commodities that the province has advantages in materials and workforce, and the province’s key industries such as wood processing and mineral exploitation.

 

The province will also carry out further planning, enhance investment and infrastructure construction for industrial parks such as Phu tai, Long My, Nhon Hoa, Hoa Hoi and Bong Son. It will build and amend investment policies, developing modern industries, creating favourable conditions for investors.

 

Building Nhon Hoi IP is considered a breakthrough for the development of Binh Dinh. The Nhon Hoi IP has total area of 12,000 ha divided into tariff and non-tariff sections. There are organized industrial plants, power plants, processing zones, recreation, tourism, and ecological zones. The IP has attracted more than 60 investors with investment capital of nearly US$3 billion.

 

In Phuong Mai peninsula, a new urban area of 750 ha will be built with high-rise buildings, hotels, villas, and beach. Remarkably, a bridge with length of 7 km will be built linking Phuong Mai peninsula with Quy Nhon city, becoming the first long cross-sea bridge in Vietnam.

 

 

I must admit that the development of Binh Dinh has been slower than some other provinces, however, we have drawn experience from them. To strongly develop our socio-economy, Binh Dinh will focus on developing human resources, improving policies, building feasibility-study projects, mobilizing potential from people and enterprises, especially private ones. Binh Dinh’s people are intelligent, hard-working and live in all corners of the countries. So they should come together to develop their province.