"Gold mine" of marine economy

Phu Yen will grow to become a marine economic center of the Central Coast region, affirming the new position of the "Phu land, Yen sky" region on the map of Vietnam's marine economy.

Planning opens up new, promising development space for Phu Yen province's marine economy

Growth drivers

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Chu Hoi, former Director of the Institute of Economics and Fisheries Planning, said that Phu Yen possesses great potential for marine economy.

Phu Yen has nearly 200 km of coastline with many types of seafood, with high economic value. In addition, the province also has many unique relics, sea and island landscapes and special festivals of fishermen, creating a unique culture, a valuable tourism resource.

In particular, Phu Yen has an outstanding advantage when it is located near the international shipping route across the East Sea. The Southern Phu Yen Economic Zone is one of the eight key coastal economic zones of the country. In addition to the Vung Ro seaport which has been invested and upgraded, Phu Yen also plans to have the Bai Goc deep-water seaport to receive ships with a capacity of up to 50,000 tons... These are the strengths of Phu Yen's marine economy.

Over the years, the sea has become the driving force for Phu Yen’s growth. The production value of the seafood exploitation, aquaculture and processing industry has increased annually, with an average increase of over 5.2% per year in the 2016-2022 period.

Sea tourism has developed rapidly, contributing over 90% of the annual added value of the province's tourism industry.

To develop the marine economy, one of the four key tasks mentioned in the Phu Yen Provincial Planning is to prioritize the development of transport infrastructure with coastal routes, main traffic axes connecting with centers, major trading hubs of the region and the whole country; traffic junctions connecting with the North-South expressway, seaport connection routes; national highways directly connecting with Khanh Hoa, Binh Dinh provinces and the Central Highlands provinces (Dak Lak, Gia Lai), creating regional development links.

At the same time, focus on building and developing the Nam Phu Yen Economic Zone with the core being Bai Goc deep-water port and Hoa Tam Industrial Park to promote the advantage of being located near international shipping routes...

Phu Yen is also gradually forming a maritime economy. Vung Ro Port, when upgraded, is capable of receiving 3,000 DWT ships, with cargo handling capacity reaching more than 700,000 tons/year; Bai Goc deep-water seaport is planned to receive ships with a tonnage of up to 50,000 tons...

Regarding coastal industry, the province has formed 5 coastal industrial parks with a total area of over 460 hectares, with an occupancy rate of about 77%. The Nam Phu Yen Economic Zone has attracted 118 investment projects with registered investment capital of VND9,285.59 billion and USD38.43 million.

Recognizing the importance of the marine economy for growth, since 2019, Phu Yen Provincial Party Committee has issued an Action Program to implement Resolution No. 36-NQ/TW of the Central Executive Committee on the Strategy for Sustainable Development of Vietnam's Marine Economy to 2030, with a vision to 2045. The program sets a goal of striving by 2025 for Phu Yen to complete the important technical infrastructure of a number of key marine economic sectors and by 2030 become a province with strong development in marine economy in the South Central Coast region.

One of the six key and breakthrough tasks set forth by the 17th Phu Yen Provincial Party Congress for the 2020-2025 term is to exploit and effectively promote potentials and advantages, focusing on the marine economy associated with promoting investment attraction for development. Thanks to that, the coastal area of Phu Yen province has developed strongly, becoming the economic locomotive of the province with an average growth rate of over 10.5%/year; attracting many investment sources, contributing over 65% of GRDP value and over 75% of the provincial budget.

Orientation to reach out

The planning of Phu Yen province for the period of 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050 approved by the Prime Minister, has identified a very important content for Phu Yen, which is economic development based on the advantages of the sea. Accordingly, the economy develops based on the advantages of the sea with the pillars being industry; high-quality service tourism; high-tech agriculture; maritime transport and logistics... Vision to 2050, Phu Yen will become a province with a diverse and prosperous economy; a center of the maritime economy of the Central Coast region...

The important orientation of the Planning has reaffirmed and enhanced the role of the marine economy in the development of Phu Yen in the new stage. The elements of the marine economy are all specifically shown in the Planning. Regarding industry, Phu Yen will develop dynamic industries associated with the marine economy; develop a number of industries with competitive advantages, such as metallurgy, petrochemical refining; produce energy, such as wind power, solar power, new forms of energy, such as hydrogen, green ammonia, etc.

Regarding tourism, Phu Yen takes sea and island resort tourism as the main focus, developing in a high-end and specialized direction. Many large projects will be invested in such as Ganh Da Dia tourist area, Xuan Dai Bay national tourist area, Bai Mon - Mui Dien scenic area, etc.; establishing Phu Yen Geopark, aiming for the title of UNESCO Global Geopark.

Regarding sea services, focus on developing logistics services associated with Tuy Hoa airport, Vung Ro port and Bai Goc deep-water port, Dong Hoa ICD dry port; forming logistics centers associated with major urban areas of the province and industrial parks in the area... Regarding seaport infrastructure, Phu Yen seaport belongs to the group of type 3 seaports, including Vung Ro port area and Bai Goc - Dong Hoa port area...

Regarding fisheries, sustainable aquaculture and industrial farming in open sea areas will be developed; offshore fisheries exploitation will be optimized; seafood processing and consumption will be developed in the chain of aquaculture production, exploitation, processing, and seafood trade to increase export value...

The planning also emphasizes the construction of Nam Phu Yen Economic Zone into a multi-industry, multi-functional economic zone with a focus on high-tech industries and industries associated with promoting the advantages of seaports; focusing on attracting metallurgical, petrochemical, energy industries... to Hoa Tam Industrial Park to exploit the potential of Bai Goc port...

It can be seen that the Planning has opened up a promising development space, so that Phu Yen can move beyond the "gold mine" of marine economy.

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