Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has urged the northern port city of Hai Phong to make full use of its strength as the gateway to the sea for the northern region, developing seaport, services, tourism and logistics as the spearhead of local development.

The party leader made the call at a working session between the Party Politburo and the Standing Board of Hai Phong Municipal Party Committee in Hanoi on September 19 to review the 10-year implementation of the Politburo’s Resolution 32 on the city’s development.

While acknowledging the achievements Hai Phong has made during the past ten years, he said the economic growth was not strong enough and not sustainable.

“Hai Phong should keep close to the directions outlined in the resolutions of the 11th Party Congress and recent Party Central Committee’s meetings, which requires economic restructuring in combination with renovating the growth model, rapid but sustainable development and shifting to in-depth development,” General Secretary Trong said.

He also reminded Hai Phong to continue maintaining political stability, social safety and order, actively prevent and thwart sabotage plans by hostile forces, because the city is located at a strategic area in terms of national defence-security.

In addition, the Party leader required that the city pay attention to strengthening the Party organization and political system, thus creating concerted strength for socio-economic development.

Secretary of Hai Phong municipal Party Committee Nguyen Van Thanh reported that Hai Phong registered an annual economic growth of 11 percent in the period from 2003-2012. The gross domestic product per capita hit nearly 2,100 USD last year, up 2.6 times from 2002, and much higher than the nation’s average.
 
Upholding its role as a major seaport in the northern region, the Hai Phong port had worked hard to increase the volume of goods it handled, from 13 million tonnes in 2003 to 48.8 million tonnes last year.
The city currently has 358 valid foreign direct investment projects worth a total 8.1 billion USD.

Hai Phong is aiming to become a modern port city, a major industrial and service hub and the main gateway to the sea of the Vietnam-China economic corridor by 2020.-VNA