Processing frozen lobsters for export at Quy Nhon frozen joint stock company.

* Still being inadequate

In past years, the processing industry has remarkably developed, largely contributing to the economic development in Binh Dinh. In 2006, the province’s industrial production value was 3.930 billion VND (about 245million USD), increasing 18.5% in comparison with 2005, in which the processing industry came to 3.303 billion VND (nearly 206 million USD) (accounted for 84%), raising 19% compared with the same period last year. In the first quarter of 2007, the province’s industrial production value gained over 1.200 billion VND ( 75 millionUSD), 28% increase with the processing industry reaching more than 1.171 billion VND (73 million USD), 34.7% increase in comparison ith the first quarter of 2006.

Binh Dinh processing industry has advanced greatly in the past time. However, the development is not really sustainable. This is because the processing industry has only relied on existing advantages while long-term and effective plans and investment programmes haven’t been built.Besides, most products are still in raw forms, having low added value, consuming lots of raw material, and having weak competition.

Alongside this, the construction of trade name is still limited, and some exporting products have to take foreign distributors’ brand names. Moreover, several businesses are in a workforce crisis because the number of trained workforce is still low, which can’t meet the demand of workforce for the production expansion.

As for the timber processing industry, Binh Dinh province’s refined woodwork has been exported to many countries and territories but most are outdoor cheap wooden furniture whose models are designed according to customers’ demand. It, therefore, consumes lots of raw material and has no unique trade name.

In the processing industry of aquatic products, Binh Dinh businesses’ productivity of processing and freezing reached 9.000 tons per year but the provincial raw materials only meet the manufacturers’ capacity by 50%. In addition, the scheme for the development of raw material areas doesn’t meet the requirement, the businesses’ purchasing measure of raw materials isn’t reasonable, and not many businesses actively import raw materials for processing, etc. 

With the granite processing industry, it has potential raw material, good quality, and models that are suitable with domestic and foreign customers, but it can’t compete against Chinese and other provinces’ products due to the high price. Currently, one square meter of Binh Dinh’s granite-made products cost over 250.000 VND, compared with 150.000 VND for Chinese products. The reason is that the equipments aren’t modernised. The products are, therefore, understandard, highly rejected, and consume lots of raw material.

* For a sustainable development

The province’s policy of economic development in the coming years is to choose the industry as the breakthrough field, giving priority to the processing industries of mineral products,and  agricultural-forestry-aquatic products.

Accordingly, Binh Dinh province’s objective is that the provincial industrial production value will gain 10.230 billion VND (roughly 639 million USD) in 2010 with the average increase reaching 25.3% per year in the 2006-2010 period, increasing the density of the industry – construction in the provincial economic structure up to 37.4%. The industrial production value will cost 46.530 billion VND (nearly 29.08 million USD) in 2020 with the average increase of the 2016-2020 period achieving 17% per year, taking the density of the industry-construction in the province’s economic structure up to 43%. To gain this objective, the duty of Binh Dinh’s industry is very hard, in which the processing industry – the key one – has a great responsibility.

According to economic experts, to help Binh Dinh processing industry develop sustainably, the urgent requirements is that the businesses have to focus on the processing of refined products with high quality to meet the demand of exporting and saving the raw material resources; they need to invest in modern technologies, producing suitable products for exporting; also, these businesses have to plan an appropriate strategy, actively importing raw materials for steadily production.

In the aquatic product processing industry, it’s necessary to strengthen the planned aquaculture and build factories near stable raw material areas. The businesses also need to re-organise the purchasing activities of raw material and actively import the raw material for a sustainable production. Forestry product processing enterprises ought to be aware of their responsibility in investing the afforestation, and equipment for the production of interior wooden furniture with high added value and less raw material-consuming, ect.

Furthermore, functional organs need to support the businesses in developing the raw material areas, training the workforce, and promoting trade, etc. Also, for the businesses’ import and export, the functional organs should widely and publicly propagandize the agreements which Vietnam bilaterally and multilaterally signed with international organizations and countries, specifing the emerged advantages and disadvantages, proposing measures to minimize the side effects of the international integration.

That’s the solution but to put it into effect is to depend on many functional bodies and businesses themselves. Hoping that with the businesses’ dynamism and timely support from functional bodies, the above-mentioned shortcomings and difficulties will be overcome, initiating the sustainable development for the provincial processing industry.

• Reported by Ngoc Thai
• Translated by Hong Quang