Phu Yen Unleashing Resources to Make Breakthroughs

Phu Yen province is focusing on removing "bottlenecks" in essential infrastructure, planning and site clearance, particularly accelerating administrative procedure reform, enhancing the responsibility and accountability of agency leaders in administrative reform, and thoroughly solving problems in investment, production and business. Thus, the province is determined to unlock investment resources to achieve socioeconomic breakthroughs. Vietnam Business Forum has an interview with Mr. Tran Huu The, Chairman of Phu Yen Provincial People's Committee, on this issue.

Phu Yen province is firmly carrying out economic recovery and business promotion solutions and tasks. Could you please introduce outstanding results of the province in the first six months and key tasks in the last months of 2022?

In the first months of 2022, Phu Yen province issued action programs, plans and directives to carry out socioeconomic development tasks and solutions; launched Plan 121/KH-UBND dated June 20, 2022 to implement Resolution 11/NQ-CP of the Government dated January 30, 2022 on Socioeconomic Recovery and Development Program.

The province also cooperated with the Vietnam National University of Ho Chi Minh City to issue a consulting report on safe and flexible socioeconomic recovery and development in the context of the COVID-19 epidemic in 2022-2025. On that basis, provincial and local agencies have concretized plans and activities, with focus on business support solutions for manufacturing and business recovery and development of enterprises.

As a result, in the first six months of 2022, the province's economy achieved higher growth than previous years, with all economic sectors recovering and thriving. Notably, the gross regional domestic product (GRDP) increased by 5.22% (versus 2.62% in the first six months of 2021 and 1.93% in the first six months of 2020) and total budget revenue fulfilled 53% of the full-year target assigned by central government, 39.8% of the provincial government, and equaled 87.2% of the value from the same period of 2021. Social and cultural aspects made great progress. National defense, security, social order and safety were maintained. External affairs continued to be promoted.

In the remaining time of this year, the province will continue to implement the Government's directions; focus on concretizing Resolution of the 17th Provincial Party Congress; direct effective implementation of summer-autumn crop and the summer crop in 2022; strengthen prevention and fighting of forest fires and natural disasters; and speed up new rural construction program.

The province is focusing on removing difficulties for enterprises to invest in infrastructure, production and business; clear "bottlenecks" in land, site clearance and administrative procedures; and accelerate public investment disbursement in 2022. Besides, Phu Yen is speeding up preparation, completion and submission of plans in 2022 to the Prime Minister for consideration and approval, including Nam Phu Yen Economic Zone Master Plan and Tuy Hoa City Master Plan; revising local coastal road planning; reviewing detailed local plans supported by donors with products; preparing plans to deal with emerging problems; and supporting investors to complete procedures for early implementation and resolute settlement of slow-moving projects.

In addition, the province will drastically carry out public administration reform tasks, especially in investment and PCI improvement; actively build e-government, enhance working performance of the Public Administration Center; and foster digitization in health, culture, education, natural resources and environment.

A corner Tuy Hoa City

After implementing the Resolution of the 17th Provincial Party Congress for half a term, what do you think about the result of key tasks and breakthroughs for the 2020-2025 term, specifically promoting administrative reform, improving the PAR Index, and ameliorating business investment and business development support?

Over the past time, the province has always seriously directed implementation of solutions to boost the investment and business environment and create favorable conditions for businesses and investors. In business registration, the province has also effectively reduced the settlement time of administrative procedures; diminished time cost to facilitate enterprises to enter the market early; and guided and assisted business households to transform into enterprises. At present, the province is home to 4,100 companies, an increase of 18% over 2020.

Accelerated investment promotion has helped draw many large projects of real estate, tourism services and renewable energy. Specifically, in 2021, the province carried out online investment promotion events with some Swedish investors on development of wind power projects, with Indian investors on a world-class pharmaceutical park and with Singaporean investors on a wind power project and a data center. Furthermore, by taking part in many online conferences, seminars and dialogues to boost images, potential opportunities and investment environment, provincial leaders worked with many large corporations and provided information on markets, trade opportunities, investment and trade promotion abroad.

In the following years, the Provincial People's Committee will continue to direct changes in working methods, strengthen administrative discipline, accelerate public administration reform (PAR) together with building e-government, and resolve to build a democratic, professional, modern, lean, effective, efficient and capable administration to enable development, integrity, public service and facilitate investors and enterprises to invest and deploy business and production in favorable locations.

Decision 11/2022/QD-UBND dated March 18, 2022 showed that Phu Yen is speeding up administrative reform and improving the investment and business environment to clarify personnel, work and responsibility. Could you please tell us more about this?

Speeding up public administration reform is the most difficult to change responsible people. Raising the responsibility and accountability of agency leaders will renew thinking and awareness of PAR role and significance, improve the investment and business environment, facilitate governmental transformation, and directly and comprehensively affect socioeconomic development.

Therefore, the Provincial People's Committee consolidated the Steering Committee for Public Administration Reform and Business Investment Environment Improvement of Phu Yen province led by the chairperson of the Provincial People's Committee assisted by vice chairpersons of the Provincial People’s Committee and leaders of provincial departments and chairpersons of district-level people's committees. The Provincial People's Committee directed and assigned provincial agency leaders and chairpersons of district-level people’s committees to lead and monitor administrative reforms; foster communications on raising responsibility and accountability of agency and local leaders and public employees about the role, significance and content of administrative reform.

The province is consistently carrying out all six reform areas: Institutions, administrative procedures, administrative apparatus, civil service regime, public finance, and e-government and digital government construction and development. Administrative agency leaders are responsible to direct and administer implementation of tasks and solutions and to handle PAR shortcomings and limitations. PAR performance results are the basis for evaluating the work performance of agencies/localities and their leaders.

The application of this decision is to concretize determination and uphold the spirit and responsibility of the whole system to identify and address shortcomings and weaknesses. Therefore, Phu Yen also wants to spread the message of a progressive government which places people and businesses at the center of service and is ready to listen to and assist people and businesses.

In the immediate future, the province will focus on reducing some business costs, lower lending interest rates, carry out support packages for businesses; improve dialogue forms and completely solve problems. All levels and sectors of government need to create a favorable environment to support enterprises to carry out innovations and business startups, enhance capacity and ethics of public employees and strictly handle bad behaviors and harassing acts.

Thank you very much!

Ngo Khuyen(Vietnam Business Forum)