On the morning of May 6, the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) announced the Provincial Competitiveness Index Report - PCI 2024, marking 20 years of accompanying the improvement of the business environment in Vietnam.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. Pham Tan Cong, Chairman of VCCI, said that in 2024, the PCI Report showed a positive picture of improving provincial economic management.

Accordingly, the median score reached 67.67 points, up 1 point compared to the previous year and the eighth consecutive year exceeding the 60-point mark, the threshold considered to reflect a favorable business environment.

In particular, the original PCI Index - an index reflecting the quality of core economic management, reached 68.18 points, continuing to improve continuously since 2016. This is the result of the persistence and perseverance of many localities in reform and active supervision from the business community.

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Provincial leaders and VCCI at the announcement ceremony of the PCI 2024 rankings. Photo: Ngoc Cuong

Mr. Pham Tan Cong said that in the PCI 2024 rankings, Hai Phong rose to the top position for the first time with 74.84 points. This is convincing evidence of Hai Phong's successes over the past years in economic growth and investment attraction.

Other localities have also held high positions for many consecutive years, such as Quang Ninh (73.20 points), Long An (72.64 points), Bac Giang (71.24 points), continuing to be in the top of the rankings.

In addition, the provinces in the top 10 also include Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Thua Thien - Hue, Hau Giang, Phu Tho, Dong Thap. Notably, Hung Yen entered the list of localities with leading competitiveness for the first time.

Mr. Pham Tan Cong believes that behind the above figures is a story of transformation, of effort and creativity. That is the journey that PCI has accompanied localities to promote healthy competition, focus on enterprises, and act for sustainable and inclusive development.

He emphasized that we are entering an aspirational transition period, when the Party, the National Assembly and the Government set a target of 8% economic growth in 2025 and maintaining double digits in the following years. In that context, PCI is not only a tool to measure the quality of governance, but also an important foundation for the high economic growth program.

PCI 2024 is also the 20th announcement by VCCI and the last time there are all 63 provinces and cities in the ranking, before the process of rearranging provincial administrative units according to the Central Resolution is officially implemented from the second half of 2025.

This is a special moment, closing a 20-year cycle of sustained reform, while opening a new era of development, in which operational efficiency and innovation will be the main driving forces.

According to him, with the merger of provincial administrative units, the rearrangement of the local government apparatus into two levels and the reorganization of local departments and branches, the improvement of the provincial business environment in the coming time will have many new opportunities and challenges.

In the coming time, in addition to PCI, VCCI will work with localities to implement new initiatives, such as the Provincial Green Index (PGI) - an index reflecting the quality of environmental governance associated with sustainable development, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and adapting to climate change.

PGI and PCI will form a pair of indices that promote both economic growth and environmental protection, which are very important dual goals that Vietnam is striving to pursue.

The secret that helps Quang Ninh keep the PCI 'throne' for 6 consecutive years When talking about PCI, Quang Ninh is often mentioned first, the locality has been the champion of the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) for 6 consecutive years, and has been in the group of 5 provinces and cities with the best economic management quality in the country for 10 consecutive years.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/hai-phong-lan-dau-tien-dan-dau-bang-xep-hang-pci-2024-2398154.html