Developing the Southeast into a civilized and modern region - Last article: International trade hub

Infrastructure synchronization

According to Minister of Transport Nguyen Van Thang, in recent times, the Southeast region has focused resources on investing in the construction of transport infrastructure. Specifically, 108km of expressways have been put into operation, 226km are under construction and 414km are being prepared for investment; striving to have 350km by 2025 and 750km of expressways put into operation by 2030.

Currently, the Southeast region has upgraded the railway line from Nha Trang to Ho Chi Minh City; accelerated the progress of the urban railway projects Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien, Ben Thanh - Tham Luong; studied the construction of high-speed railways North - South, Ho Chi Minh City - Can Tho, Bien Hoa - Vung Tau, Thu Thiem - Long Thanh.

The Southeast has also put into operation coastal transport routes; is upgrading bridges on the southern waterway, upgrading the North-South and East-West waterway corridors, connecting to Cai Mep port; exploiting Cai Mep international transit seaport, upgrading Cai Mep - Thi Vai waterway to the container port area and is researching the construction of Can Gio international transit port.

Chairman of the People's Committee of Ba Ria - Vung Tau province Nguyen Van Tho said that in a short time, the Southeast Regional Coordination Council, under the direction of the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Ministers and central ministries and branches, has achieved very clear results, especially in the regional transport infrastructure system.

Regarding the progress of inter-regional transport projects passing through Dong Nai province, Mr. Vo Tan Duc, Acting Chairman of Dong Nai Provincial People's Committee, shared that Dong Nai is implementing the construction of Bien Hoa - Vung Tau Expressway and Ring Road 3; the province strives to hand over 100% of the land to implement these two projects by June 2024.

Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Phan Van Mai also said that through pre-feasibility study, the total length of Ho Chi Minh City Ring Road 4 is about 206.82km (Ba Ria - Vung Tau 18.23km; Dong Nai 45.54km; Binh Duong 47.45km; Ho Chi Minh City 17.3km; Long An 78.3km). The total investment (phase 1) is about 127,230 billion VND, including construction part of 78,074 billion VND, site clearance part of 49,155 billion VND.

“Ho Chi Minh City Ring Road 4 is of great significance to the socio-economic development of the provinces in the Southeast region, the Southern key economic region, and has inter-regional traffic connectivity to solve the circulation of goods and reduce logistics costs,” the Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee emphasized.

However, according to Minister of Transport Nguyen Van Thang, the region's transport infrastructure system has not yet developed commensurate with the potential, advantages and socio-economic development needs of the Southeast region. The regional and inter-regional transport infrastructure network is still lacking in synchronization and modernity. Among them, Ring Road 3 is not yet complete, Ring Road 4 is in the process of investment preparation, the progress of urban railway construction is still slow, and the fundamental problem of transport in urban areas has not been solved.

The Minister of Transport said that the Southeast region needs to prioritize resources to focus on investing in modern and synchronous transport infrastructure according to the planning. It is estimated that the total investment capital demand for transport in the Southeast region from now until 2030 is about 964 trillion VND. Of which, in the 2021-2025 period, about 304 trillion VND will be invested, including: The central budget allocates over 88 trillion VND, the local budget allocates over 47 trillion VND, the capital of state-owned enterprises is 109 trillion VND and the capital mobilized by investors is 59,346 billion VND.

Connection Center

According to the planning, the vision to 2050, the Southeast region will become a developed region with high income; strong economic potential, modern economic structure; a center of science, technology and innovation, high-tech industry, logistics and an international financial center among the leading groups in the region and the world; with modern and synchronous infrastructure.

The Southeast region will develop harmoniously between economy, culture, society, environmental protection, and climate change response; have a high quality of life, with healthcare and education levels among the leading in Southeast Asia; the ecological environment will be protected and developed effectively in the direction of green economy; the good cultural values and identities of ethnic groups will be preserved and promoted. National defense, security, order and social safety will be firmly ensured; foreign affairs and international integration will be increasingly deep. The growth rate of the total budget in the Southeast region (GRDP) in the period of 2031-2050 will reach about 7.5%/year, GRDP/person by 2050 will reach about 54,000 USD/person/year.

Among them, Ho Chi Minh City will be the nucleus, the growth pole of the region; the economic, financial and service center of Asia, where international financial institutions and large economic corporations of the world are concentrated; develop on par with major cities in the world, and be an attractive global destination.

Minister of Science and Technology Huynh Thanh Dat said that if the Southeast region wants to develop science and technology to its full potential, it needs to focus on policies to support innovation and creative startups in priority areas of the provinces and cities in the region; policies on semiconductor technology. Policies on priority industries to attract strategic investors, invest in research and support high-tech transfer in the fields of information technology, biology, automation, clean energy, investment in the semiconductor industry, etc.

Minister Huynh Thanh Dat said that in the coming time, to improve the capacity of technology activities in Ho Chi Minh City and apply pilot policies in Ho Chi Minh City on the mechanism for selecting science and technology project programs, financial mechanisms, public procurement... for priority areas such as: AI, biotechnology... The Ministry of Science and Technology has developed and announced a set of innovation indexes for localities, with technical support from the World Intellectual Property Organization, synchronized with the innovation indexes of countries.

The Southeast region will promote economic restructuring in the region in association with growth model innovation, creating breakthroughs to improve productivity based on science, technology, innovation and digital transformation. Develop a number of modern industries and services, becoming new growth drivers such as: semiconductor industry, chip manufacturing, financial services (associated with the formation of an international financial center), logistics. Focus on developing the Southeast region into a national dynamic region, becoming the leading economic center of the country and Southeast Asia. Build a modern, smart Ho Chi Minh City, leading and creating spillover effects, linking urban areas, competitive enough, integrating regionally and internationally, playing an important role in the urban network of the region.

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung stated that with the efforts, determination and results achieved, with the orientation of the Politburo, the direction of the Prime Minister and the determination to unite, it will certainly create a bright picture for the Southeast region in the future, worthy of being a model in all development models of the country, leading in innovation, reform and development. The Southeast region will have "stormy" developments due to the participation of the entire political system, people and businesses.

Source: https://doanhnghiepvn.vn/kinh-te/phat-trien-dong-nam-bo-thanh-vung-van-minh-hien-dai-bai-cuoi-dau-moi-giao-thuong-quoc-te/20240531105341100