The core of attracting investment is building trust for businesses.

(Baonghean.vn) - Attracting investment is an 'order' and a task for the Party Committee, government and people of the province to promote potential advantages, making the province rich and strong, the economic center of the North Central region.

“Sweet fruit” and “big runway” to change the economic landscape

To develop a province's economy, in addition to promoting internal resources, mobilizing external resources is extremely important, especially in the period when the country is deeply integrated into the world economy.

The issue of attracting investment is not simply attracting investors' capital for the economy, but what is especially important is attracting new, modern technology, advanced machinery and equipment, creating high productivity, attracting good management methods, good experts, advanced production and business processes, good, beautiful products, high competitiveness, creating a large market, creating jobs, increasing income for workers and increasing state budget revenue.

CIENCO4 Group and Hemaraj Group (Thailand) signed an investment agreement with the People's Committee of Nghe An province on the project of investing in construction and business of infrastructure of industrial parks - urban areas in the Southeast Economic Zone. Photo: Document

Nghe An province has promoted investment attraction in recent years and achieved many great results, creating a strong development transformation in economy and society. Major brands and leading economic groups in the country and region have chosen Nghe An as an effective investment destination, which proves the correct and effective investment attraction policy.

Large economic groups such as Masan Group, Hoa Sen Group, Sekop Singapore Group, The Visai Ninh Binh Cement Group, Muong Thanh Group, TH True Milk Group, Vinamilk Group, Sabeco Beer Corporation, Habeco, etc. have invested heavily in Nghe An in recent years, improving and changing the economic situation of Nghe An.

The working delegation and provincial leaders listened to a representative of VSIP Group explaining the project. Photo: Archive

Attracting investment from enterprises in Nghe An, a series of infrastructure projects have been invested, creating a "large runway" for the economy to take off, such as the road connecting Tay Nghe An, N5, N4 roads; Nghi Thiet international deep-water port, Thai Hoa - Hoang Mai - Dong Hoi road, Cua Lo port expanding berths 5, 6; Vinh international airport, the new Dung bridge across Lam river, Cay Chanh bridge, Yen Xuan bridge, Bac canal, Dieu Hoa lake, hospitals, schools, commercial banks and other infrastructure projects have been connected to create a solid foundation for the socio-economic development of the province, creating favorable conditions for attracting investors. Bac Vinh, Nam Cam, VSIP, Tho Loc, Dong Hoi industrial parks, Dong Nam economic zone... are the bright spots leading to Nghe An's economic breakthrough.

Chart of 5 countries investing FDI in Nghe An in the period 2011-2016.

From 2009 to now (the year Nghe An held its first investment promotion conference), Nghe An has attracted 663 projects with a registered capital of VND230,000 billion, including 626 domestic projects with a registered investment capital of VND70,000 billion and 37 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects with a registered capital of VND160,000 billion, equivalent to USD7,200 million. The estimated realized investment capital is VND92,578 billion, contributing to an economic growth of approximately 8% during this period (2009-2015). The budget revenue in 2010 was VND2,760 billion, and by 2016 it was over VND11,000 billion, four times higher.

We can affirm that attracting investment is an effective solution to promote the development of the province's economy. Therefore, attracting investment is an "order" and a task for the Party Committee, government and people of the province to promote the potential advantages of the province to achieve the goal of making the province rich and strong, the economic center of the North Central region.

Lessons learned

The achievements of the past years are the great efforts of the Party Committee, the government and the people of the province, along with the great support of the central government. The results of attracting investment demonstrate the solidarity and great efforts of the Party Committee and the people, arousing the desire to strive for wealth of the entire population. A very specific reason is the efforts of government officials at all levels in reforming administrative procedures, the enthusiastic and dedicated style in accompanying and sharing difficulties with investors, quickly resolving procedural problems, thereby creating trust for investors. "Good wine needs no bush", which has spread and attracted investors to stop in Nghe An.

Hoa Sen Steel Plant of Hoa Sen Group invested over 5,000 billion VND in Dong Hoi Industrial Park - Hoang Mai Town - Nghe An. Photo: Document

Communication plays a very important role in attracting investment. Press agencies, especially Nghe An Newspaper and Nghe An Radio and Television Station, have been pioneers in introducing the potential and strengths of Nghe An, as well as encouraging investors and authorities at all levels to accompany investors. In attracting investment, the enthusiasm, friendliness, sharing, and initiative of those who work in attracting investment or handling investment procedures are extremely important. It is these people who create trust for investors to decide to invest.

“Investment Day” and great solutions!

The propaganda work to promote the potential, comparative advantages, and image of the province to investors is a very important factor, helping investors understand the strengths, understand the culture, people, and favorable conditions to decide to invest. The effectiveness of organizing investment promotion conferences at the beginning of the year is very clear, the conferences are held continuously over many years, creating a cultural feature like a festival for investors to learn, exchange, and sign investment projects.

Information through the press system is extremely important. Nghe An Newspaper and Nghe An Radio and Television are the main pillars that take the lead in promoting policies and mechanisms, and introducing the province's potential to investors very effectively, together with other newspapers.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue attended the 2017 Spring Investor Meeting in Nghe An. Photo courtesy

Identify the province's competitive advantages to promote, orient, search for, and attract suitable investors. Our province has the largest land area in the country, with many mineral potentials, especially in the midlands and mountainous areas with abundant raw materials, which are favorable for attracting investment in the agricultural and forestry processing industry such as sugar cane industry, high-quality tea, functional food industry, food industry, wood processing industry, cement, tin, etc.

We have a Southeast economic zone with many industrial parks with high incentive mechanisms, good infrastructure, abundant young labor force, good labor quality, close to international airports, international seaports... These are advantages to attract investment in modern industrial factories, creating breakthroughs and economic locomotives for the province. In addition, determining investment in education, health care, and commercial tourism with socialized capital is extremely necessary for Nghe An, a populous province, the economic center of the North Central region, large urban areas, and developing commercial tourism, so it is necessary to focus on attracting investment in this field.

Focus on building important bridges to attract investors. First of all, it is the attention and support of central ministries, provinces, our country's diplomatic agencies abroad, and investment promotion agencies. Good relations and proactive coordination with diplomatic organizations of other countries and foreign investment promotion organizations. Promoting the influence of enterprises that have successfully invested in the province to introduce other investors to invest together - this is a very effective solution.

Improve the quality of investment promotion, invested projects need to be implemented quickly, with good technology, high efficiency, creating great spillover. Our ancestors said "quality is more important than quantity", we do not attract investment at all costs, do not attract projects that affect the environment, and resolutely eliminate projects with outdated technology. Projects that have negative impacts on the sustainable development process need to be stopped promptly. Therefore, improving the quality of investment attraction is also choosing clear investment flows that contribute to the economic development of the province.

Route N5 connects the Southeast Economic Zone to Hoa Son, Do Luong district (section through Hoa Son commune - Do Luong). Photo: Document.

Investment activities need to be considered as a social responsibility. Everyone has the desire to see their province develop. Each ministry, each enterprise, each citizen is a propagandist, a bridge, an active member participating in the work of attracting, promoting, introducing investors and helping investors to smoothly carry out investment work in order to quickly put the project into use and bring high economic efficiency.

The core issue is still building trust for investors. Attracting investors to the province is difficult, retaining them to expand their investment and attracting other businesses to continue investing is even more difficult. Therefore, accompanying, sharing and removing difficulties for investors is a very important task. It is necessary to focus on leading the removal of difficulties and obstacles for investors from administrative procedures, policies and mechanisms, site clearance, security and order, transportation, human resources, etc. so that the project can be implemented smoothly and effectively. This is also building trust for businesses. When businesses' investment is favorable, investors' trust in the authorities at all levels increases continuously, spreading to make investment attraction more and more effective.

Ho Duc