Ben Tre province asked to boost sea-based economy

Ben Tre (VNA) – Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh demanded Ben Tre further tap into its advantages and develop the sea-based economy, while addressing a working session with officials of the Mekong Delta province on February 16.

He said Ben Tre holds a special position in road and sea transport connectivity. With a 65km coastline and an exclusive economic zone of nearly 20,000sq.km, it boasts favourable conditions for developing sea-based economic sectors, logistics, and wind power.

Besides, the province is home to a relatively large area of fertile farmland, vast mangrove forests, rich fishery resources, and a big river and canal system ideal for developing waterway transport linking with others in the Mekong Delta and the southern key economic region. It also has a long history and diverse culture of 23 ethnic groups.

Such numerous distinctive advantages and diverse resources provide a pre-condition for Ben Tre to make development breakthroughs, the PM opined.

Holding advantages for boosting the sea-based economy, Ben Tre should make development plans for gas-fired power generation, renewable energy, aquaculture, fishing, transportation, and logistics.

The Government leader pointed out the need to enhance connectivity within the province as well as with other Mekong Delta localities, those across Vietnam, and other countries to fuel development. Therefore, it is important to develop roads and inland waterway transport to strengthen that connectivity and optimise every potential and advantage.

He also underlined the tasks of diversifying and improving tourism products; boosting agricultural restructuring and IT application to farming; concurrently stepping up fishing, aquaculture, seafood processing and export, and fishery resource protection; and preventing illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Ben Tre is home to over 70,000ha of coconut trees and a large area of shrimp farming, which should be developed into key sectors, PM Chinh recommended, adding that it needs to press on with the One Commune, One Product (OCOP) programme, build new-style countryside, connect urban and rural areas, modernise the irrigation network, efficiently exploit the Mekong River’s water resource, and cope with climate change, natural disasters, and saltwater intrusion.

It was reported at the meeting that in 2022, the province's gross regional domestic product grew 7.33%; exports reached 1.51 billion USD, up 19.69%; the State budget revenue topped 5.6 trillion VND (236.5 million USD), 6.43% higher than the target; total development investment in society approximated 23 trillion VND, up 14.32%; and 63 FDI projects and 267 domestic ones were attracted to the locality.

Ben Tre showed good performance in building new-style rural areas, developing products under the OCOP programme, controlling saltwater intrusion, promoting administrative reform and provincial competitiveness, and supporting startups, enterprises and the collective economy.

Local officials also highlighted achievements in cultural affairs, education, health care, social security ensuring, defence, security and sovereignty safeguarding, and the Party and political system building./.