Priority is given to attracting investment projects with high-tech

Ho Chi Minh City has the largest number of EPZs and IPs in the country, could you introduce some aspects about attracting investment in the EPZs and IPs in the recent years, especially from the beginning of 2017?

Ho Chi Minh City currently has 17 EPZs and IZs with an area of 2,571.64 hectares. The EPZs and IPs in the city have attracted a large amount of capital to invest in industrial production, technical infrastructure and services for industrial production, creating an export turnover for the city. Performance has resulted in attracting new technology and advanced management experience from abroad. Creating more job opportunities for labourers of the city and other provinces.

Typically, in the first nine months of 2017, total investment capital, including new and adjusted ones, has been higher than in previous years with the added value of projects reaching 605.81 US $ million, equaling 121.16% of the plan in 2017 (US$ 500 million), up 70.76% over the same period in 2016. Of which, FDI reached 339.44 million USD, increase doubled over the same last year; domestic investment reached VND5,923.5 billion, up 42.4% over the same period in 2016.

What are the solutions to attract investment in the EPZs and IPs in Ho Chi Minh City?

To achieve these positive results, the Management Board has deployed many solutions to remove difficulties and obstacles for investors operating in the EPZ-IPs; promote access, learn information from new investors to attract more capital. For example, IZs have difficulty in clearing the ground, the Management Board of the EPZs and IPs has worked directly with the districts and industrial zones to remove obstacles in order to speed up the process and create conditions for businesses. Invest in infrastructure to attract investment projects. The Management Board of the EPZs and IPs in Ho Chi Minh City also coordinated with the departments and agencies to remove obstacles related to the payment of land rents by a number of infrastructure development companies.

Implementation of the "one-stop, on-the-spot" management mechanism at the management board. Accordingly, the Management Board will issue investment licenses, construction permits. If the investor needs a source of labour, we also resolve. This model creates conditions for enterprises to develop and has been applied to management boards of industrial zones, economic zones and hi-tech zones in provinces and cities nationwide.

In addition, the management board will support the construction of industrial zone in Hiep Phuoc Industrial Zone (phase 2) and attract domestic investors to invest in supporting industries. Study and propose preferential policies for companies dealing in supporting industrial park infrastructure and investors and enterprises investing in supporting industrial parks. Continuing to implement the pilot model of high-rise factory buildings from 2016 to 2020 in the EPZs. Up to now, the 8-storey workshop has been completed and put into operation in Tan Thuan EPZ; constructed and is expected to complete in 2017 factory buildings in Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park.

Although the EPZs and IPs in Ho Chi Minh City have attracted many projects with large capital, experts said that this number of projects only "fill full". What do you think about these reviews?

This assessment is actually not wrong, but it is true only in the early stages of the "fill" orientation. In addition, most of the EPZs-IZs are planned passively, as proposed by the infrastructure development companies that are not planned in a pre-oriented manner so the attraction of investment projects also Much depends on infrastructure companies. Management board also directed investors, licensed the project without the right to control, so in recent years in the EPZ-IZ, there are still many small projects, scattered, not connected. Infrastructure is synchronous ... The technology of enterprises in EPZ - IZs are often labour-intensive technologies, mainly as textile and electronic assembly.

However, recently, the management board has directed the infrastructure companies gradually shifted to attracting businesses to invest in areas with high levels of grey matter and added value, absolutely limit the intensive industry Labor shortages such as textiles, garments and low-tech industries, causing environmental pollution such as dyeing, metallurgy ...

In the coming time, what criteria does the city have to offer to attract high-tech projects?

Due to the limited land bank of the city, the adjustment of the EPZ-IP to improve the quality of development, labour productivity and competitiveness of the economy coupled with a strong economic development oriented to advanced technology, high added value and using less labour. The adjustment process will also be removed from the planning list for those that have not been deployed, which is not convenient for traffic and does not attract investors to develop infrastructure that affects the lives of local people.

In addition, in the coming time, the Management Board will continue to carry out specific measures to attract investment in the EPZs, including the application of the "one-stop door" mechanism on land; capital support for infrastructure development of the IZ; Strengthen the solution of connecting infrastructure and social infrastructure for EPZ-IZ. Regarding transport infrastructure, it will be accelerated the construction of infrastructure connected to the existing IZs, in which priority is given to areas with concentrated industrial zones. With these guidelines, we expect to bring many changes and create favourable conditions to attract many domestic and foreign investors to contribute to the general development of the city.