Japanese businesses are investing more than $15 billion in Ho Chi Minh City.

Currently, there are 2,268 active projects from Japanese businesses with a total investment of over $15.2 billion, ranking 3rd out of 152 countries and territories in terms of investment capital in Ho Chi Minh City.

Conference scene. Photo: ITPC

On December 12th, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee organized a roundtable conference for Japanese businesses.

In his opening remarks at the conference, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Loc Ha emphasized that the Japanese business community has long been an important part of the city's development. Currently, there are 2,268 investment projects with a total registered capital of over 15 billion USD, reflecting not only growth in the scale of production and business activities but also contributing to shaping standards in cooperation and creating momentum for the city's development. Many businesses have been closely associated with the city through its ups and downs, accompanying it even during the most difficult times. This has created a strong emotional foundation for the cooperative relationship between the two sides.

Following the merger, the city has taken on the stature of a leading economic , industrial, and service center in the region. This new development space demands new thinking, new models of collaboration, and stronger partnerships with international partners, including Japan – a country that has always stood alongside Ho Chi Minh City in strategic projects.

"The city recognizes that supporting businesses is not just a slogan, but a political responsibility, a central task. We must constantly create a safe and favorable investment and business environment, promote innovation, and serve the goals of socio-economic development and improving the quality of life for the people," Mr. Nguyen Loc Ha emphasized.

Metro Line 1 (Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien) is a testament to the cooperation between Ho Chi Minh City and Japan. Photo: Nguyen Le

Speaking at the conference, Mr. Kume Kunihide, President of the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Ho Chi Minh City (JCCH), stated that JCCH currently has nearly 1,100 member businesses, making it the third largest business association in the world, after Shanghai and Bangkok. Previously, JCCH member businesses operated in five localities: Long An, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Ba Ria - Vung Tau provinces and Ho Chi Minh City. However, after Ho Chi Minh City merged with Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau provinces, approximately 900 member businesses (equivalent to about 80% of the total) are now located within this locality.

According to Mr. Kume Kunihide, a Japanese company that has been operating in Vietnam for over 30 years, improving the existing investment and business environment is extremely important. JCCH believes that creating favorable conditions for businesses to operate smoothly is a key factor in strengthening the Vietnam-Japan relationship of trust and is the foundation for attracting more new businesses and investors in the future.

“I expect that this infrastructure development will continue to attract more investment capital, and at the same time create momentum for the new Ho Chi Minh City to rise to become a leading urban center in the Asian region. We Japanese businesses also wish to participate and contribute to that development,” said Mr. Kume Kunihide.

Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Van Duoc delivers the concluding remarks at the conference. Photo: ITPC

Concluding the conference, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Van Duoc stated that institutional reform and a significant improvement in the investment and business environment are tasks that the city is determined to make substantial progress on.

The National Assembly has passed the amended Resolution 98. This is a very important special mechanism. Strategic investors will receive more favorable treatment, leading to higher efficiency. The city has been implementing administrative procedure reductions (a 30% reduction), creating a more open environment, faster investment, and shifting from an administrative to a service-oriented approach.

The city has been and continues to accelerate the construction of its transportation infrastructure. By 2026, the city will be a major construction site with large-scale, key national and city-level transportation projects such as ring roads, expressways, and urban railways... It is expected that in the next 5 to 10 years, Ho Chi Minh City will have a synchronized and modern transportation infrastructure.

Furthermore, the establishment of an International Financial Center in Ho Chi Minh City is one of the new driving forces for the city to attract investment, contributing to strong economic development, and also serving as a channel to better support FDI businesses in the future.

The city has identified green transformation and digital transformation as two crucial areas for the future, as solutions to make Ho Chi Minh City a globally livable city, and also as solutions to help the city escape the middle-income trap.

The head of Ho Chi Minh City emphasized that sustainable development requires a new human resource pool. The city views a breakthrough in human resources as a breakthrough within a breakthrough. In the past, Japan has helped the city train high-quality human resources, and the city hopes Japan will continue to support this breakthrough.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/doanh-nghiep-nhat-ban-dang-dau-tu-hon-15-ty-usd-vao-tp-ho-chi-minh-726550.html