The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MoPI) and the People’s Committee of the northern province of Ha Nam have jointly announced a master plan for socio-economic development in the Red River Delta up until 2020 at a recent conference in Phu Ly, Ha Nam.
Speaking at the event, MoPI Deputy Minister Dang Huy Dong said the master plan is an important basis for ministries, sectors and relevant localities to map out sectorial development plans, provincial socio-economic development plans and five-year and annual socio-economic development plans.
Under the master plan, the region’s contribution to national gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to increase from 24.7 percent in 2010 to 26.6 percent in 2015 and 28.7 percent in 2020.
Meanwhile, the region’s average per capita income will climb to 2,500 USD by 2015 and about 4,180 USD by 2020.
By 2020, the agricultural sector will account for 7-7.5 percent of the region’s GDP, industry and construction will reach 45-47 percent, and services, 46-48 percent.
The plan also set a target of creating jobs for 300,000 to 350,000 labourers every year and reducing the annual average rate of poor households to 2 percent, while overcoming environmental pollution in both rural and urban areas and ensuring sustainable requirements during the region’s development process.
Priorities will be given to high quality transport, consultation, design, invention, finance-banking, telecommunications, education-training, healthcare, trade, tourism, science and technology.
With ambition to develop tourism into a spearhead sector, the region will pour investment into building a number of key tourism areas that satisfy international standards.
By 2015, the region is expected to welcome 17-18 million domestic visitors and 3.2-3.5 million international tourists. The numbers are expected to hit 24-25 million and 4.5-5 million respectively by 2020.
Investors are encouraged to continue investing in industrial parks, especially those repairing and building ships and other marine vehicles in Hai Phong city, and Quang Ninh and Nam Dinh provinces.
In agriculture, the region will focus on intensive cultivation of rice, vegetables and flowers, industrial pig and poultry farming and aquaculture using cutting-edge technologies.
Economic and social infrastructure will be developed synchronously to generate momentum for the region’s socio-economic development.
The system of highways connecting the region’s economic, commercial and service centres will be completed during the period.
The plan aims to build the region into the nation’s pioneer area in implementing the country’s strategic breakthrough targets, restructuring the economy and renovating growth models.
The region is expected to become a driving force for the country’s economic development, industrialisation and modernisation, contributing to raising Vietnam ’s position in the international arena.
The Red River Delta includes 11 provinces and centrally-run cities. They are Hanoi , Hai Phong, Hai Duong, Bac Ninh, Vinh Phuc, Hung Yen, Thai Binh, Nam Dinh, Ha Nam , Ninh Binh and Quang Ninh.
According to the plan, Hanoi and neighbouring cities will be developed into a national centre of politics, culture, economics and science-technology.
Hai Duong city will be a central urban area, focusing on developing industries, science research and technology transfer, while Nam Dinh city will become a centre for agriculture-served industry, training and healthcare, and Hai Phong a gateway for economic integration in the north.
At the conference, participants presented reports related to measures to implement the plan, with priorities given to developing an area for manufacturing high quality farm products and a rural transport infrastructure system.-VNA
