Ready for New Stage of Development

Dak Lak province has achieved very positive results in investment attraction in the past time. Many operational projects have proven their investment efficiency, created jobs for local workers, and made important contributions to socioeconomic development. Currently, with local potential advantages and policies, Dak Lak is seeing new development opportunities. Vietnam Business Forum’s reporter has an interview with Mr. Dinh Xuan Ha, Director of the Dak Lak Department of Planning and Investment.

Ceremony of awarding Investment Policy Decisions and Investment Registration Certificates to investors

Could you brief on investment attraction results of Dak Lak province in the past time?

Dak Lak always focuses on investment attraction. The Provincial People's Committee always facilitates investors to carry out their projects in the province. Dak Lak has attracted 347 investment projects with a registered fund of VND80 trillion since 2016. Much-invested industries include renewable energy (wind power and solar power), urban development, tourism and agriculture.

How do you assess the performance of investment projects in Dak Lak?

Operational investment projects have worked well, created jobs for local workers, paid taxes to the State Budget and made an important contribution to local socioeconomic development. Typically, Xuan Thien Group invested VND15,402 billion in five solar power projects with a total capacity of 600 MW in Ea Sup district. Trung Nam Group invested VND16,500 billion in Ea Nam wind power plant project. 

In 2022, the National Assembly passed a resolution on piloting specific mechanisms for Buon Ma Thuot City. How did Dak Lak province respond to this information?

The National Assembly passed Resolution 72/2022/QH15 on piloting specific mechanisms and policies for Buon Ma Thuot City development, the first district-level unit in the country to be piloted on this specific mechanism. The above resolution showed the special attention of leaders of the Party, the State, the National Assembly, the Government, ministries and central agencies to Buon Ma Thuot City, Dak Lak province as well as the Central Highlands.

Local authorities and people are very happy and pin high hopes on this resolution. This is a very important resolution for Buon Ma Thuot City and Dak Lak province to solve development bottlenecks and an important driving force to promote local potential and advantages to enable Buon Ma Thuot City and Dak Lak province to make a strong development breakthrough in the coming time and become an urban center of the Central Highlands as per Conclusion 67-KL/TW of the Politburo dated December 16, 2019.

To foster the effect of the above specific mechanism, and create driving force for socio-economic development and boost investment attraction, what tasks will the Department of Planning and Investment focus on?

To successfully pilot specific mechanisms and policies for Buon Ma Thuot City, create a driving force for stronger investment attraction and socioeconomic development, the Department of Planning and Investment will focus on implementing contents and tasks assigned by the Provincial People's Committee. Currently, the department is actively coordinating with relevant agencies and the Buon Ma Thuot City People's Committee to urgently advise the action plan for implementation of Resolution 72/2022/QH15 of the National Assembly. Particularly, specific tasks are assigned to all levels and branches in a bid to achieve a high effect of each policy and focus on highly feasible solutions.

Would you mind telling me more about the solutions that Dak Lak province has executed?

In order to successfully accomplish socioeconomic development goals, mobilizing funds from businesses and investors is very important. Thus, Dak Lak will continue to implement solutions to draw out this funding source.

Currently, the province is actively coordinating with central ministries and branches to advise on removing barriers to mechanisms and policies, perfecting legal regulations, and accelerating decentralization in order to foster innovation and creativity in performing political tasks of all levels and branches.

The province will further reform administrative procedures, and create a favorable and open investment environment, providing maximum support for investors to implement their projects in the locality. It will ensure security and order to facilitate enterprises and investors to invest and do business with peace of mind; and promptly remove difficulties and obstacles against them when they do business in the locality.

At the same time, a well-made plan will work as a foundation for determining development investment plans for each period and for each year in order to effectively exploit and use resources for development investment. The province will complete elaboration, submission for approval and effective implementation of Dak Lak Master Plan for the 2021 - 2030 period, with a vision to 2050, ensure its compliance with national master plans, national sectoral master plans and Central Highlands master plans to effectively unlock potential, comparative and competitive advantages of the province.

Another key solution is to concentrate investment resources, develop socioeconomic infrastructure, and construct synchronous and modern transport infrastructure to meet traffic connection demands for Dak Lak and other Central Highlands provinces with Central Coast and Southeast provinces and the world. The province will focus on speeding up the investment progress of key projects to foster regional connectivity, especially Khanh Hoa - Buon Ma Thuot Expressway, Eastern Buon Ma Thuot Ring Road, Buon Ma Thuot Airport which is upgraded to become an international airport, and commercial infrastructure at Dak Rue Border Gate and Phu Xuan Industrial Park.

In addition, based on local potential and strengths, the province will define key industries and priority areas to draw investment funds to work out annual and period-specific investment promotion programs; develop and publicize lists of investment projects in search of investors; and effectively carry out investment promotion activities.

Thank you very much!

By Quoc Hung, Vietnam Business Forum