During a recent meeting with provincial authorities, Deputy Prime Minister (PM) Truong Hoa Binh required the Northern coastal province of Quang Ninh to map out and propose specific incentive policies at the earliest to develop Van Don quickly into a special economic zone.
Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh speaking at the meeting
Binh said the policies, which will become legal regulations, must be in accordance with international commitments and actual conditions in Vietnam, besides ensuring consistency, stability and longevity.
The policies, which need to be consistent with current laws, must be superior in terms of infrastructure, tax, credit and finance so as to attract strategic foreign investors with huge projects, cutting-edge technologies and high-quality human resources, Binh said.
The judicial bodies of the special administrative-economic zone must be designed to be able to legally handle economic and commercial disputes as well as high-tech crime and intellectual property issues, he said.
The deputy PM instructed the Ministry of Planning and Investment to work with Quang Ninh province and complete the project.
To develop Van Don Special Economic Zone, the province needs around USD 12 billion. The province has so far mobilized approximately VND 40 trillion (USD 1.75 billion) , mainly for infrastructure development.
A VND-7-trillion international airport in Van Don district, about 50km from Hạ Long city, which is home to the world heritage site of Ha Long Bay, is under construction, and is scheduled to become operational in 2018.
Van Don has a politically and economically important position as it lies on the strategic transit route from East Asia to Southeast Asia and from ASEAN to China; in Vietnam-China “two corridors, one belt” cooperation area; in Nanning-Singapore economic corridor; and in extended Tonkin Gulf inter-regional cooperation area.
Van Don Special Economic Zone is part of a Government-approved plan to build three such zones in the country; the other two are Van Phong in the central province of Khanh Hoa and Phu Quoc in the southern province of Kien Giang.
The zones are expected to spearhead the country’s growth and tap local advantages to drive growth in the area. They will pilot key new economic and administrative policies before they are applied nationwide in order to develop the maritime economy.
Source: VNA