Developing the Dong Nai riverside economy

Alongside the Long Thanh International Airport urban area, the Dong Nai River corridor has been identified by Dong Nai province as a key development driving zone. Under this orientation, the province will also focus on developing a riverside economic model.

Stretching about 586 kilometers, the Dong Nai River is the longest inland river in Vietnam. Within Dong Nai province alone, the river runs approximately 200 kilometers through its territory.

Tapping into the advantages of the river landscape

According to Ho Van Ha, Member of the Provincial Party Committee and Vice Chairman of the Dong Nai Provincial People’s Committee, the Dong Nai River holds a crucial role in the province’s socio-economic development. In particular, the areas along the river still possess significant untapped potential which, if properly developed, could make a major contribution to the province’s growth.

The Dong Nai riverside road, running through Tran Bien ward in Dong Nai province, has been developed to harness the growth potential of the riverfront area. Photo: Pham Tung

The Dong Nai River is the province’s most important development corridor, as it lies along an international maritime route (Group 5) and gathers numerous inland waterways and deep inland channels. Moreover, running from north to south, the Dong Nai River serves as the axis of urban, rural and natural landscape, a main feature of the province's spatial layout and a driving axis for the dynamic urban development corridor of the southeastern region.

The river is also a vital natural axis that supplies water, regulates the climate, supports energy development, and contributes to mitigating climate change. For Dong Nai province, the Dong Nai River holds significant cultural, spiritual, and historical value, closely tied to the province’s formation and development.

Given its position and potential, the Dong Nai riverside corridor has been identified as one of two key development driving zones of the province in the coming period.

Dong Nai is currently revising its provincial plan for the 2021–2030 period, with a vision extending to 2050. Under this plan, the Dong Nai riverside economic corridor aims to become one of the province's three strategic economic corridors, with the goal of leveraging the river’s landscape advantages to develop ecological urban areas, resort tourism, and high-end services.

The riverside economy to be the future of Dong Nai

According to Dr. of Science and Architect Ngo Viet Nam Son, Chairman of NgoViet Architects & Planners (based in Ho Chi Minh City), the area along the Dong Nai River holds significant potential for developing a chain of riverside urban areas. This chain could be integrated with the planned development of the urban areas around Tri An Lake. Given the vast potential of the Dong Nai riverside region, Dr. Son stated that the future of Dong Nai lies in a riverside economy.

The riverside road running through Tran Bien ward has been developed to tap into the growth potential of the Dong Nai riverfront area. Photo: Pham Tung

According to architect Ngo Viet Nam Son, in the new context, the development of the Dong Nai riverside economy must be closely integrated with the urban development model known as TOD (Transit-Oriented Development), which focuses on urban growth around public transportation hubs.

Son noted that the TOD urban development model is already being implemented in Ho Chi Minh City, driven by central government resolutions that allow the application of several special mechanisms. “I hope that Dong Nai will also make proposals to the central government to adopt similar mechanisms in order to develop the TOD urban model as part of its riverine economic development direction,” Ngo Viet Nam Son shared.

According to the Dong Nai Provincial People's Committee, as part of implementing the adjusted provincial plan for the 2021–2030 period, three strategic economic corridors are being defined for development. These include: the urban–industrial economic corridor along National Highways 13 and 14, Ring Road 4 of Ho Chi Minh City, and expressways connecting major industrial centers within the province; the high-tech agriculture and eco-tourism economic corridor in the northern region, associated with specialized farming zones and national parks; and the Dong Nai riverside economic corridor, aimed at leveraging the river's landscape advantages to develop ecological urban areas, resort tourism, and high-end services.

For Dong Nai Province, in order to realize its riverside economic development strategy, the province has implemented various projects, particularly transport infrastructure projects along the north–south axis, to attract investment in projects within this corridor, such as the Dong Nai riverside road and the inter-port road.

In addition, the province is initiating a series of projects to build road bridges across the Dong Nai River, connecting with Ho Chi Minh City, including the Cat Lai Bridge and the Long Hung Bridge.

With the “launching pad” of a connected transport infrastructure system, numerous urban development projects along the Dong Nai River are also being invested in and built across the province.

By Pham Tung – Translated by Dang Huyen, Minho