Where will the investment come from?
(Baonghean) - Today (February 15th), Nghe An province held a meeting with investors for the Spring of the Year of the Horse - 2014. This was an opportunity for local government leaders and investors to review successes and remaining issues from the past year, identify difficulties and shortcomings, define policies, and find and agree on solutions to further promote investment activities in Nghe An.
To date, Nghe An province has 627 active investment projects, including 39 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects with a total capital of VND 109,589.13 billion and USD 1.49 billion. According to information from the Nghe An Provincial People's Committee, in 2014, Nghe An aimed to attract 75-85 investment projects across various sectors with a total registered investment capital of approximately VND 12,000-14,000 billion; with a focus on increasing the proportion of large-scale investment projects and FDI projects.
Significant achievements have been made, but the effectiveness of attracting investment has not met the requirements and has not fully exploited the province's potential; the number of projects and the scale of registered capital are still low compared to the national average; projects using modern and high technology, and projects in industrial-urban infrastructure, education-training, healthcare, and agriculture are still few... If we compare Nghe An with some provinces that have similar geographical and economic conditions, it is not difficult to see that Nghe An has lagged behind its counterparts in attracting investment and developing the economy... The Nghi Son Cement Plant (Thanh Hoa) using raw materials from Hoang Mai is a typical example of the competition among provinces in attracting investment.
Lawyer Luong Van Trung, a native of Nghe An currently working in Ho Chi Minh City, argues that: Besides some projects related to non-renewable or renewable resources, Nghe An needs to compete with other provinces, meaning it needs to “invest” in its competitive advantages. Regarding human resources, population shifts and mechanized labor have eroded the localized nature of its workforce. Furthermore, from a cultural perspective, the professionalism of Nghe An people in their work attitudes has been questioned to some extent. Lawyer Luong Van Trung's observation fully aligns with the assessment: “Some of Nghe An's competitive advantages in attracting investment compared to other localities are still low because we lack sufficiently strong factors, especially to attract large, key projects that would drive development and spread investment.”
The question is: when will there be "sufficiently strong, exceptional factors" to create a competitive advantage? And where should one begin to acquire these factors? It is evident that investors are primarily interested in the consistency and predictability of local investment policies; the impartiality of the public administration system; and a transparent, scientific, and efficient administrative culture.
But what more can Nghe An do? According to lawyer Luong Van Trung, the province must still rely on its geoeconomic advantages but pay attention to purchasing power and public support; be "decisive" in creating favorable conditions for investment, such as implementing a one-stop mechanism, assigning a dedicated person with the right to intervene throughout the entire system, within the limits of the law; and at the same time, leverage the success and love for their homeland of Nghe An people returning to invest in their hometown. To achieve this, the province needs to build trust from investors, and to gain that trust, it must sincerely operate the public administration system effectively and fulfill its promises, not just offer a slogan of "rolling out the red carpet" hoping investors will simply walk in... It can be said that this is essentially "investing" in establishing a professional production, business, and investment attraction environment.
2013 is remembered for having the highest number of domestic and foreign investor delegations visiting and exploring investment opportunities in Nghe An province ever, including many powerful organizations and corporations from South Korea, Japan, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Thailand, the United States, and Hong Kong… Whether they will return to invest in this land of outstanding people, rich culture, and abundant economic potential will be decided by the authorities and relevant agencies of Nghe An province. Where does the investment come from? The answer is: investment from within!
Tran Hoai
