The northern coastal province of Quang Ninh has welcomed a number of major investors, both domestic and overseas, who came to explore investment and partnership opportunities since the beginning of this year.

A view of Quang Ninh province 

The success in catching the investors’ intention is greatly attributable to efforts by the local Investment Promotion Agency (IPA).

 To lure more large investors to Quang Ninh, the IPA has accelerated investment promotion programmes on an annual basis. Since the beginning of the year, the agency has received 24 delegations of investors to the province, an increase of nearly 37 percent from the same period last year. Most investors wanted to seek investment opportunities in tourism and services (33 percent), manufacturing and processing (12.5 percent), real estate (11 percent), and industry (7.8 percent).

 In the first eight months of 2019, as many as 20 projects have got the province’s approval for their chosen sites to develop 1/500-scaled detailed construction planning.

 The agency has taken various measures to step up investment promotion, particularly developing investment database and issuing investment promotion documents and publications, said head of IPA Nguyen Doan Dinh Cuong. It also plans to update and amend documents and publications for promoting investment at key economic zones and build promotion documents for different industries, for example, tourism, resort property and logistics, he said.

 Additionally, the province has promptly learned about recommendations and handled inquiries from businesses and investors to improve their satisfaction with local services. For instance, the IPA in August received an inquiry from Future Investment Medical JSC from the Czech Republic which hoped to construct a high-quality beer production facility in the province.

 Shortly after receiving the proposal, the agency has actively worked with local authorities to provide the company with updated information on potential locations for the facility and supported it in conducting field surveys at seven locations in Dong Trieu town, Uong Bi city and Hoanh Bo district. After the field surveys, the foreign firm has shown interest in a site in Zone 1, Bac Son ward, Uong Bi city.

 To help the Czech company soon start the project, the agency has cooperated with local departments and authorities to guide it in investment procedures. Notably, based on specific inquiries from the firm, the agency has informed relevant departments to together support it in completing the procedures.

Besides assisting investors in the province, the IPA has focused on accelerating investment promotion in other provinces and cities as well as overseas. The agency has not only introduced about local business climate, investment policies and opportunities but also established and maintained relationship with organisations and associations which can play a role in promoting domestic investment, as well as with local and international banks, intermediary financial institutions, and investment consulting companies.

 Most recently, Quang Ninh attended a trade and investment promotion event in Japan held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Vietrade) on August 26 – 30. On the sidelines of the event, the province hosted a separate investment promotion programme targeting Japanese investors who showed interest in doing business in the province.

 Vu Thi Kim Chi, IPA deputy head, said in the coming time, the agency will continue adopting innovative solutions in investment promotion. It also plans to give better on-the-spot support to major investors that are looking for investment opportunities in Quang Ninh.

 She said the agency will focus attention on attract projects in tourism and services to increase the sector’s proportion in the provincial economy. In addition, it will actively coordinate with organisations and cities and provinces both at home and overseas to implement regional investment promotion activities, creating greater communication effect for the province’s investment potentials.

 Quang Ninh is fast becoming an attractive destination for both tourists and investors, according to the Vietnam Association of Realtors.

 The province has topped Vietnam’s Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) out of 63 cities and provinces nationwide for two consecutive years in 2017 and 2018.