In 2024, Da Nang embraced the theme "Year of promoting administrative reform, strengthening discipline, unlocking investment resources, accelerating economic growth, and ensuring social security." Mr. Le Trung Chinh, Chairman of Da Nang People's Committee, emphasized that "Da Nang will promptly address its weaknesses and leverage its strengths to enhance the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) in 2024 and beyond. The human factor is identified as a driver of development."
Finding bottlenecks
From its first release of the PCI Index in 2006 to 2022, Da Nang City has constantly taken the lead in creating a favorable and attractive business investment environment and established a strong position in the group of best performers. To have that success, the city has also carried out many effective networking programs and meetings, such as business talks, business dialogue programs and annual business meetings; launched the District and Department Competitiveness Index (DDCI) to receive maximum comments and contributions from the business community to create motivation for continuous reform for investors and businesses.
In 2023, scoring 68.79 points, Da Nang ranked 16th on the PCI Index rankings, dropping seven places from 2022 although local leaders endeavored for improvement over the past year.
Giving explanations to this development, the city government said that the main reason is local resources have not been released to bring investment attraction and project implementation into full play. According to Chairman of the Da Nang People's Committee Le Trung Chinh, the city has reported hardships to the Central Government for resolution and local agencies have drastically carried out business support and promotion solutions. By reviewing every component indicator, relevant agencies will seek to further improve the investment and business environment.
Strengthening practical and consistent solutions
Currently, Da Nang is aiming to become a leader of industrialization and modernization. The PCI performance will also partly demonstrate specific and practical results of executing important policies of the Party and the State on strongly reforming administrative procedures, improving the business environment, restructuring the economy, innovating growth models and balancing economic development, sustainable environment, social justice and developing a green carbon-neutral economy. In particular, this is one of the important activities to execute Resolution 41-NQ/TW dated October 10, 2023 of the Politburo on building and promoting the role of Vietnamese entrepreneurs in new period, with the most direct mission of “Creating a favorable, safe, and equitable investment and business environment for entrepreneurs and businesses to develop and contribute”.
The city aims to maintain and raise well-performing component indicators and focuses on improving average and lowly-ranked indicators like access to land, time cost, informal charge, legal institutions and security, and labor training. The city upholds transparency in settling administrative procedures. Of course, to ensure transparency, it is necessary to select good officials with professional qualifications and a high sense of responsibility. It is necessary to apply information technology to monitor and assess the quality and attitude of handling public affairs.
Never being discouraged by any failure and never disappointing the government and people, in 2024, Da Nang City will make more efforts to increase its PCI Index ranking. Particularly, it will continue to maintain and have new initiatives in improving the business environment.
Accordingly, specialized agencies will regularly organize dialogues and exchanges with people and businesses to promptly grasp policy responses and resolve problems for them, in conditional sectors. The city will enhance transparency in access to information, especially information about planning and preferential/encouraging/supporting investment policies. Furthermore, the city will necessarily review and effectively implement valid business support policies, especially annualized business support policies approved by the People's Council and the People's Committee.
The stable and sustainable business development is closely linked to the city’s development. If businesses are not determined and the government is timid or hesitant, expected results will not be achieved. Licensed projects must be practically executed. The role of business associations will be elevated to connect, share and improve the business performance of local companies; represent and increase the interests of their members, act as bridges for local companies and authorities, advocate policies, maintain dialogues with the Municipal People's Committee and coordinate relationships with relevant agencies and localities in influential policies on business operations.
Despite such a resolution, the current economic context is challenging due to market volatility, insufficient skilled workers, administrative procedures, and objective factors, said Chairman Chinh. However, “regardless of those barriers that are considered objective and subjective, we will accompany and make continuous effort for a common goal of building Da Nang into a safe, prosperous, happy and important city,” he noted.
By Binh Minh (Vietnam Business Forum)
Vietnamese
October 2024
Hanoi