Tran Du Lich, director of the city’s Economic Research Institute, said the provinces that surround HCM City should be part of a master development plan. They include the provinces of Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh, Long An and Tien Giang.
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Nhon Trach Industrial Park is home to many enterprises. The park in southern Dong Nai Province plays an active supporting role for southern key economic hubs.
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The southern key economic zone, including
HCM City and seven provinces, needs a comprehensive master plan to spur economic growth, a senior economist has said.
Tran Du Lich, director of the city’s Economic Research Institute, said the provinces that surround HCM City should be part of a master development plan. They include the provinces of Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh, Long An and Tien Giang.
The targeted provinces in past years had developed their own master plans independent of each other, he said.
Head of the HCM City’s Export Processing Zones and Industrial Parks’ Management Board, Vu Van Hoa, said the southern zone badly needed policies to promote co-operation with local provinces.
Lich said the lack of a master development plan for the zone had led to the unregulated construction of environmentally unsafe factories.
Large factories in Binh Duong Province north of HCM City, for example, have been built without a waste water treatment system, damaging fruit orchards in the Lai Thieu surrounding area.
Too many industrial parks contain similar businesses, with most focusing on labour-intensive industries such as footwear, garment and electronic parts.
Many industrial parks lack adequate infrastructure, a qualified workforce and new roads and bridges.
Binh Phuoc Province currently has five industrial parks but they contain large unoccupied land plots because of the lack of foreign investment.
HCM City in the last two years has limited the establishment of IPs and instead has focused on developing a high-tech industry and high quality service.
Co-ordination
To create better economic efficiency, HCM City plans to cooperage with provincial IPs, such as Tan Tao IP, southwest of HCM City and Duc Hoa IP in Long An Province.
Binh Duong and Dong Nai Provinces plan to expand their main roads and highways to the nation’s largest economic hub.
Long An Province, officials said, should tap the rich agricultural and marine potential of the bordering province of Tien Giang.
Other efforts include co-ordination among local provinces to clean up the Dong Nai, Song Be and Sai Gon rivers.
The zone must create a job training centre to improve the skills of the workforce, officials said.
(Source: VNS)
