The central province of Thanh Hoa is focusing on improving its investment climate, implementing effective socio-economic development policies and promoting economic restructuring in a bid to attract more investment into the locality.

According to Nguyen Dinh Xung, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, Thanh Hoa has been implementing a number of measures to tap its potential and boost economic growth and competitiveness.

The locality is paying attention to equitising State-owned enterprises, divesting from non-core businesses and fostering new-style agricultural cooperative models to strengthen connections and form production value chains.

Meanwhile, private and foreign businesses are receiving favourable conditions to develop their production and trade activities.

Thanh Hoa is also paying heed to developing small- and medium-sized enterprises, promoting the application of advanced science and technologies in production and training human resources to serve the locality’s industrialisation and modernisation goals.

It will also strengthen state management of mineral and environmental protection and streamline administrative procedures to make it easier for investors to rapidly carry out projects and effectively operate in the locality.

Covering over 11,000 square kilometres, Thanh Hoa has advantages in transport, infrastructure facilities, geographic position and natural resources.

It boasts five industrial parks and the Nghi Son economic zone (EZ) – one of the five key economic areas of the country which focuses on heavy industry, basic industry and the Nghi Son seaport.

Spanning 18,000 hectares, Nghi Son EZ is now home to 134 projects, including 124 domestic projects. The majority of projects are operating effectively, contributing to local economic development and creating jobs for thousands of local residents.

The zone also houses the Nghi Son Oil Refinery and Petrochemical Complex (NSRP), the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia and the biggest foreign direct investment (FDI) project in Vietnam with a capital investment of more than 9 billion USD.

Thanh Hoa is concentrating on building the Lam Son-Sao Vang Hi-tech Industrial Park with a total area of 6,000 hectares, which is expected to become the province’s major economic area in the future.

The locality has recently ranked among the top ten in the provincial international economic integration index, the provincial competitiveness index, and the Vietnam Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index, evidence of its promising progress towards favourable investment conditions.

In 2014 alone, the province granted licences for 152 new projects, including 10 FDI projects, with a combined registered capital of 27 trillion VND (1.27 million USD), 2.5 times that of the previous year. Seven FDI projects also increased their capital by 107.6 million USD.-VNA