However, Cao Bang still has a number of barriers that hinder the development and contribution of the local business community, as well as the effectiveness of investment attraction activities.
Barriers to remove
Sharing about the shortcomings and limitations that have “squeezed” the development opportunities of local entrepreneurs, a retired state-owned enterprise leader who returned to work in a private enterprise said that in the past, the unit received several delegations of provincial leaders to visit and encourage the unit. However, besides the achievements and contributions, the enterprise rarely received inquiries about whether there were any recommendations or difficulties…
Meanwhile, according to the opinions of the Cao Bang business community, the most prominent problems include the scarcity of construction materials despite the theoretically sufficient supply; the problem of “two prices” of materials causing losses to contractors; the process of determining financial obligations in changing land use purposes is still slow; the situation of preparing bidding documents lacks transparency and land procedures are still complicated, causing harassment in some places. In particular, many local businesses report difficulty in accessing clean land funds, encountering obstacles when participating in socio -economic development projects.
Along with that, the quality of administrative reform has improved but still does not meet expectations. Procedures are complicated, with many levels; compliance costs are high; and the service attitude of a number of civil servants has not really accompanied businesses... Mr. Hoang Manh Ngoc, Chairman of the Cao Bang Provincial Business Association, shared that some businesses have made many recommendations but have not been resolved. Some difficulties and shortcomings that have lasted for a long time and have been slow to be resolved have created bottlenecks and discouraged some businessmen.
In 2024, although the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry did not officially announce the rankings of provinces and cities outside the top 30 on the PCI rankings, based on the actual score, Cao Bang only scored 63.8 points, ranking 61/63 provinces and cities nationwide in terms of PCI index. In 2022 and 2023, the province's PCI index also ranked at the bottom of the PCI rankings of provinces and cities nationwide. This reality shows that the locality still has a lot to do to overcome limitations, improve the investment-business environment, "untie" businesses, attract investment, and create strong growth momentum.
Breakthrough solution to improve pci index
Some opinions say that, first of all, the province needs to focus on reviewing, simplifying, and cutting at least 30% of administrative procedures related to enterprises in accordance with the direction of the Prime Minister. In particular, the land sector - the biggest bottleneck at present - needs to be prioritized: from publicizing and making land use planning transparent, building a digital land database to establishing a working group to support investors in removing difficulties in land clearance.
Localities also need to improve the quality of the provincial electronic information portal, creating an easy and transparent search system. Building a "Centralized Business Support Portal" integrating services such as online business registration, answering questions, receiving and handling business recommendations will be a breakthrough in improving the investment environment.
The government needs to promote its role of “creating and serving”, proactively listening and promptly resolving business recommendations. In 2025, Cao Bang provincial leaders chose the following working themes: “Discipline and responsibility; proactive and timely; streamlined and effective; accelerating breakthroughs”.
But in order for the concerns of Cao Bang businessmen to be properly addressed, the locality still needs a “revolution” in caring for the “health” of businesses. In particular, the locality needs to have a mechanism to publicize the results of the settlement, linking the responsibility of the heads of departments, branches, and localities with the satisfaction index of businesses.
In addition, the province needs to consider adjusting support policies for small and micro enterprises - which account for the majority of local business structures - in a practical and accessible manner, avoiding the situation of "support on paper". Propose free tax, accounting and legal consultation in the first year for newly established businesses, support the establishment of leading enterprises in potential fields such as agriculture, tourism, import-export, and construction to lead the development of the local business community.
Another key factor is to improve the quality of civil servants; to strengthen training, raise sense of responsibility, service spirit; and to resolutely and strictly handle corrupt officials. Publicizing hotlines, feedback mailboxes and transparent handling of negative reports are also necessary steps to regain the trust of the business community.
Cao Bang has great potential to become a bright spot in the investment environment such as its position as a gateway to trade with China, rich mineral resources, unique natural landscapes, and hardworking, creative people. However, to effectively exploit these advantages, a “revolution” is still needed, changing the mindset of service: from “management” to “accompanying and supporting”, from “licensing” to “creating conditions for development”. If the government considered the difficulties of businesses as obstacles, its tasks unfinished and promptly responded, and coordinated to solve them, then perhaps many things would be different!
Source: https://nhandan.vn/cao-bang-cai-thien-chi-so-nang-luc-canh-tranh-cap-tinh-post886745.html
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