Addressing the conference, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc praised Kien Giang for making great efforts in improving its business environment to attract more world-class businesses and corporations to invest in the fields in which Kien Giang has advantages, covering education, tourism, hi-tech agriculture and seafood processing and export, while not only Phu Quoc island but both Rach Gia and Ha Tien cities also attract dozens of investment projects.
The PM affirmed that Kien Giang has a lot of potential and advantages in forests, seas and the largest agricultural land in the Mekong Delta. It is a strong socio-economic and cultural bridge between Vietnam and other countries in the region. Therefore, Kien Giang needs to develop strategies to help enterprises, investors and local people contribute to boost the province’s deep integration into the free trade agreements that Vietnam is a member, the PM suggested.
He also proposed Kien Giang to develop its economy based on three pillars, including high quality agricultural adaptation to climate change, safe seafood production associated with the processing industry targeting the high-end segment and world-class eco-tourism. The marine economy will play a key growth driver for Kien Giang, along with the border economy and the breakthrough development of Phu Quoc, he stressed.
For investors, PM Phuc reiterated that enterprises should have a long-term and sustainable business strategy when doing business in Kien Gian, while promoting environmental protection and social responsibility. Enterprises should not consider the investment promotion conference as an opportunity to advertise themselves but must immediately implement what they have committed to after the conference ended, the cabinet leader stressed.
He also pledged to direct the relevant ministries and agencies for a successful deployment of e-Government and the digital economy in Vietnam, making it easier for investors to do business in the country, while continuing to ensure rights for investors to work together with localities to remove the existing bottlenecks.
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PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc (centre, backline) and delegates witness the signing of a range of investment memorandum at the event. (Photo: NDO/Viet Tien)
Chairman of Kien Giang Provincial People's Committee, Pham Vu Hong, introduced notable highlights in his province’s socio-economic development in recent years, in which economic growth was maintained at a relatively high rate, averaging 7.17% per year. The average growth rate of tourist arrivals is more than 20% per year, and revenue from tourism increases by over 40% a year. Jobs have been offered to more than 35,000 local employees a year, of which trained workers account for 60%.
According to Hong, the province still has a lot of potential, particularly in agro-forestry development and coastal aquaculture in the coastal areas of Giang Thanh, Kien Luong, Hon Dat and U Minh Thuong, along with potential for marine economic development, processing industry associated with local raw materials and ecotourism development. Besides Phu Quoc island, Kien Giang still has three key tourism areas with huge potentials, including Ha Tien - Kien Luong, Rach Gia - Kien Hai and U Minh Thuong which features the U Minh Thuong National Park.
The Kien Giang leader also affirmed to strongly improve the local business investment environment, remove bottlenecks in administrative procedures, and completely adjusting the legal framework to facilitate investment project approval.
At the conference, 18 enterprises were granted investment certificates by Kien Giang Provincial People's Committee in 20 projects with a total capital of nearly VND43.4 trillion. In addition, the province also signed investment commitments with 25 enterprises to invest in 35 projects, with a total capital of over VND150 trillion.
