The establishment of industrial zones (IZ) in Binh Dinh in recent years has been the driving force behind the development of the local industrial production, partly contributing to transformation of the provincial economic structure. Yet, the IZ planning and building still show many shortcomings which need to be soon solved.
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A view of Nhon Binh industrial zone.
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Fostering the industrial manufacturing
The Government has issued many policies to promote the IZ development in the past 10 years. The advocating guideline can be found in the Laws on Investment, Land, and Enterprise Revenue Tax.
Binh Dinh Province People’s Committee issued the Decision No.16/2007/QĐ-UBND dated August 8, 2007 on regulating some incentive policies for the IZs’ infrastructure construction and business in Binh Dinh.
The decision aims to support and encourage the speed-up of the IZ planning and establishment at localities. Accordingly, any investment projects on the IZs’ infrastructure construction and business will be benefited from preferential policies issued by not only the Government, ministries and central agencies but the provincial People’s Committee.
In addition, the localities have responded to the IZ planning and establishment quickly and wholeheartedly. Most of them persistently ask for permission to build IZs at their land for sake of the socio-economic development.
The establishment of the IZs not only helps to reduce the pollution in residential areas because of factory moving and relocation but satisfies the need of the enterprises for manufacturing land, partly contributing to the job creation and the increase of industrial production value, according to the province’s Department of Industry and Trade.
The industrial manufacturers in the IZ are making up roughly 16 percent of the province’s total industrial production value and generating 11000 regular jobs with the average monthly income of around 1.5 million VND per person.
Shortcomings that need to be solved
Despite its achievements, the industrial zone planning and building in Binh Dinh still have many shortcomings. Most of IZs that have been fully operational are small-scale ones of which some have insufficient infrastructure.
Because of the localities’ budget straits and unsynchronous regulations, the investors have to build infrastructure works outside the borderline of the IZs. The local authorities just cover part of the cost or deduct it from the land lease fee. The problem causes the IZs less attractive and lengthens the duration of the IZ infrastructure construction.
Most of the IZs haven’t finished their technical infrastructure building as required in the approved planning and projects. The majority of the IZs, including those located near the residential areas, haven’t had available sewage works. The environmental pollution hasn’t been, thus, thoroughly resolved.
The biggest shortcoming is the fact that the transportation system isn’t taken into consideration. Many roads leading to the IZs aren’t good enough for the over 10-ton trucks to go in and out.
Furthermore, the IZ planning and establishment is so diversified that some industrial zones are operating in poor feasibility. The shortcomings of the IZs in certain localities are badly affecting other IZs which are effectively operating in neighbouring localities.
The above-mentioned problems have discouraged the investors. Many came to seek investment opportunities here but then left due to the poor condition of the IZs. That’s the reason why the localities in the province are facing abundant obstacles in IZs construction on the contrary to their planning to build many IZs.
At present, the province has 38 IZs which cover a total area of 1,185ha. Their basic infrastructure construction cost is over 1 trillion VND. Among them, 21 are being put into operation, of which 7 are 100-percent full and 14 are 50-60 percent full. 440 enterprises have invested in the IZs so far with the total registered capital of 1,230 trillion VND and the business operational capital of 843 billion VND.
An Nhon district is the first locality where the industrial zones were built. It also has the largest number of the industrial zones in planning and in reality. The district plans to set up 9 IZs and industrial manufacturing sites but only 3 of them are being built.
Chairman of the district People’s Committee, Tran Chau, said, “The local authority concentrates on completing the infrastructure construction of the existing industrial zones and stops the new establishment of unnecessary ones. Only when the infrastructure construction finishes will the new construction be allowed.”
An Nhon isn’t the sole case. Most localities also encounter lots of barriers in the IZ construction owing to the financial straits and unattractiveness to the investors. To push up the efficient operation of the IZs, the scale and functions of each IZ should be reconsidered and readjusted. The construction of crucial IZs should be given priority while unnecessary ones must be determinedly stopped.
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