Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on July 18 urged 12 cities and provinces in the central and Central Highlands key economic region to push ahead with public investment disbursement. 

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc speaks at the meeting. (Photo: VNA) 

During a meeting in Da Nang with representatives of the localities, the leader said greater efforts are needed to remove difficulties faced by the existing projects, and attract new projects. 

He also ordered measures to promote domestic tourism, digital transformation, administrative reform and online public services, along with breakthrough solutions to spur regional connectivity and airport, seaport and logistics infrastructure, including coastal expressways. 

No locality in the central, Central Highlands region is allowed to experience negative growth, he requested, suggesting local authorities and people put forth specific action programmes in order to complete socio-economic targets at the highest level. 

Apart from promoting the private economic sector and improving the business environment, the localities should utilise the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and new-generation free trade agreements to include major products in major global value chains. 

The Government will accompany the localities in overcoming difficulties, he pledged, assigning the Ministry of Planning and Investment to supervise their public investment disbursement.

The ministry reported that the gross regional domestic product (GRDP) of the region contracted some 3.22 percent in the first half of this year. 

According to the State Treasury of Vietnam, as of June 30, public investment disbursement of the seven central localities reached only 34.2 percent of the target, lower than the national average.