Strategic advantages for Dong Nai as a centrally governed city

With its existing potential, Dong Nai is poised to gain significant strategic advantages to create new growth drivers for both the province and the whole country, according to experts.

An independent growth pole

Master of Urban Management Phan Thi An, Deputy Director of the Center for Architecture and Rural Planning, National Institute of Architecture under the Ministry of Construction, said Dong Nai occupies a central position linking Ho Chi Minh City with the Central Highlands. Once elevated to a centrally governed city, Dong Nai would no longer function as a “satellite” but instead emerge as an independent growth pole.

The transportation infrastructure system is being developed synchronously and modernly, creating conditions for Dong Nai to accelerate development. Photo: Pham Tung

Its strategic location, combined with a full five-mode transport network positions will be major advantages for Dong Nai to achieve development breakthroughs.

According to Master Phan Thi An, in addition to Long Thanh International Airport, Dong Nai has a dense network of expressways, including Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay, Ben Luc - Long Thanh, Bien Hoa - Vung Tau, Phan Thiet - Dau Giay, Dau Giay - Lien Khuong. For railways, a series of projects have been and are being implemented in the area, such as the North - South railway; the North - South high-speed railway; the Thu Thiem - Long Thanh railway; the project of extending the Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien metro line to the provincial administrative center and Long Thanh Airport. All of these will well meet the needs for freight and passenger transport between production and consumption centers. In particular, the Ben Luc - Long Thanh expressway will create a direct and close link between the Mekong Delta provinces and Long Thanh Airport and seaports in the Ba Ria - Vung Tau area.

On the other hand, the Dong Nai seaport system, together with Cai Mep port (Ba Ria - Vung Tau) and the "super" Can Gio port, will ensure import and export activities for goods associated with industrial parks, e-commerce, and passenger transport services.

Huynh Ho Dai Nghia, strategic policy advisor at Minh Triet CAPITAL Joint Stock Company, a financial and investment firm, headquartered at 179 Nguyen Cu Trinh, Cau Ong Lanh Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, analyzed: In a modern economy, the strength of a developmental center no longer lies primarily in how much industrial land or how many projects it has, but in how many flows it can "attract", organize, connect, and amplify.

Where goods flow, value accumulates there. Where capital circulates, economic power shifts. Where high-end services concentrate, productivity and quality growth are formed. Where high-quality human resources settle, the future of that locality is written.

Long Thanh Airport creates a development impetus as well as a great competitive advantage for Dong Nai. Photo: Pham Tung

"Dong Nai, from this perspective, is holding a rare opportunity. Long Thanh is not just an airport, but also plays a strategic role that can restructure the entire economic geography of the South; Phuoc An is not just a port, it can become a hub for sea and river logistics and logistics industry. The expressway system, ring roads, connecting to Ho Chi Minh City, the Central Highlands, and Hoa Lu border gate are not just transportation projects, they They are the 'lifelines' of a new development pace," Nghia assessed.

Bui Dao Thai Truong, General Director of Roland Berger Vietnam, evaluated: Dong Nai has an extremely important strategic location in the Southeast region. With Long Thanh Airport, expressways, and ring roads, Dong Nai will clearly be the "gateway" of the entire Southeast region. With land fund supporting the development of industrial, service, tourism, and support services for Long Thanh Airport, upgrading to a centrally governed city will be a good signal for Dong Nai to transform these potentials into new development drivers.

Drivers stemming from breakthroughs in mechanisms and policies

According to Master Phan Thi An, when it becomes a centrally governed city, Dong Nai will have the opportunity to contribute more to the nation and improve the quality of life for local residents.

Specifically, regarding financial and budgetary mechanisms, Dong Nai will have greater autonomy over the budget regulation ratio, investment capital mobilization, and rewards for exceeding revenue.

Regarding planning and investment authority, the city People's Committee will have the authority to decide on investment policies for Group A projects or large-scale projects that previously had to be submitted to ministries, sectors, or the Prime Minister (depending on specific decentralization). It will have more initiative in adjusting local planning and converting land use purposes within the permitted limits to promptly welcome large waves of FDI. Especially, when organizing the urban government apparatus, the management model will shift from "rural government" to "urban government," which allows the city to establish specialized agencies for urban management, airport, and logistics. Along with that are policies for infrastructure and logistics development, prioritizing public investment capital.

Becoming a centrally governed city creates strategic advantages for Dong Nai to achieve development breakthroughs. Photo: Pham Tung

An added, when it becomes a centrally governed city, Dong Nai will also have mechanisms and policies to attract investment and ensure social welfare. Specifically, it will be able to apply the highest preferential policy frameworks on corporate income tax and land lease for high-tech industries, supporting industries, and high-quality logistics services.

"Central urban management mechanism requires higher standards for healthcare, education, and the environment. The city will have its own budget to develop leading hospitals and an international-quality university system," shared Master Phan Thi An.

"With its position as the 'heart' of the Southern Key Economic Region, Dong Nai possesses strategic advantages that few localities have," said Master Phan Thi An, Deputy Director of the Center for Architecture, Rural Planning, National Institute of Architecture under the Ministry of Construction.

Bui Dao Thai Truong also believes that when it becomes a centrally governed city, with support policies from the central government, this is an extremely valuable opportunity for Dong Nai to accelerate development, creating new growth drivers for the locality as well as the entire country.

By Pham Tung – Translated by Mai Nga, Thu Ha