Advice from Nghe An businesses on improving PCI index

* Mr. Bui Xuan Sinh - Director of VCCI, Nghe An Branch:Be boldAssign bottleneck indicators and processing times to specific departments and agencies.

At the periodAnnouncing the Provincial Competitiveness Index PCI 2022Nghe An is ranked 23rd, up 7 places compared to 2021, a big step forward, in which some component indicators have positive changes and increase rapidly.

Mr. Bui Xuan Sinh - Director of Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry VCCI - Nghe An Branch spoke at the 60th anniversary of VCCI on April 27, 2023. Photo: Nguyen Hai

However, from the actual monitoring of PCI rankings over the years, VCCI Nghe An found that some indicators were bottlenecks as they were continuously in the bottom group of provinces and were slow to improve, even falling in rank, such as indicators on market entry, labor training, land access or time costs.

To improve these indicators, according to the opinion of VCCI Nghe An, the province needs to have specific action plans, accordingly assigning responsibilities and deadlines for handling to each department, branch, and locality to preside over or coordinate with other departments and branches to handle; in projects, plans or documents assigning tasks, do not use general words, without deadlines, to avoid making it difficult to evaluate and assign responsibilities later. For example, to improve the market entry index, it is necessary to assign the Department of Industry and Trade to preside; the land access index should be assigned to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment; the progress of administrative reform, cutting paperwork should be assigned to the Provincial People's Committee Office; the labor training index should be assigned to the Department of Labor - Invalids and Social Affairs...

Strengthening the connection between vocational training institutions and businesses and technical labor employers to improve labor training index. Photo: Nguyen Hai

Besides the above solutions, the province also needs to research and promulgate as soon as possible.Support policy for international container shipsto dock at the port in the area. In business, there are often "wards" and "friends" as partners, if Nghe An is slow to issue, it will be disadvantaged. Under the same conditions, other provinces have preferential policies, attracting superiority, so shipping companies and businesses with goods can sign contracts to do business first, which means building a strong partnership. Therefore, only in localities with superior preferential policies and high competition will businesses consider changing partners, transferring goods from one province's port to another and vice versa.

Regular dredging to create a convenient channel for ships to enter and dock at Cua Lo port. Photo: NH

* Mr. Tran Van Hoan - Deputy Director of Trung Do Joint Stock Company: To improve the investment environment, it is necessary to speed up the approval of planning and land lease procedures at district-level Industrial Clusters.

Nghe An's Provincial Competitiveness Index in 2022 ranked 23rd nationwide, reflecting the province's efforts to improve the investment environment last year. However, to facilitate small and medium-sized enterprises and projects, there needs to be an additional index assessing the competitiveness of departments, branches and districts (DCCI) to promote administrative reform and improve the investment environment in district-level industrial clusters.

Our company specializes in researching and producing construction materials in the area. After basically completing phase 1 of the high-grade materials production project in Nghi Van (Nghi Loc), the Company continued to invest in building a raw material refining and exploitation factory for brick production in Tan Hop and Tan Ky communes. The Company started investing in May 2021, expected to be completed and put into operation in the third quarter of 2022. However, since then, the land lease procedures have not been completed, so no items have been implemented.

High-end material production equipment line at Nghi Van Complex (Nghi Loc) invested by Trung Do Joint Stock Company. Photo: Provided by the facility

The reason is that the project was implemented right at the transitional period of land use planning and construction material production planning for the period 2022-2030, so we had to wait and add the project to the planning. The project has a total investment of about 250 billion VND and uses nearly 5 hectares of land, but waiting too long reduces business opportunities and efficiency.

Investors from the Korean Business Association and the Hanoi Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Center visit and learn about opportunities at VSIP Nghe An 1 Industrial Park. Photo: Nguyen Hai

* Mr. Tran Anh Son - Chairman of Nghe An Province's Outstanding Business Association: Take action to thoroughly and decisively resolve the businesses' recommendations.

Very pleased with the PCI ranking of the province in 2022, proving that the recommendations of the business community last year have been accepted by the province, with solutions to direct implementation, thereby creating changes and being recognized by the business community. Specifically, those are the 3 indicators of fair competition or informal costs, dynamism and pioneering of the government that the Association of Typical Enterprises and the Provincial Business Association have continuously recommended in recent times.

Building infrastructure at Nam Cam Industrial Park to attract businesses to invest and lease land. Photo: Nguyen Hai

However, to improve the PCI index in the coming time, the province needs to focus and make efforts to improve the land access index and the quality of human resources (labor training). Specifically, for the land access index, it is necessary to demonstrate by thoroughly resolving the recommendations of Truong An General Materials Joint Stock Company and 379 Construction Investment Joint Stock Company in Area A, Nam Cam Industrial Park, which are being re-encroached by people. This is the content that on behalf of enterprises, the Provincial Business Association has proposed many times at the meetings of the province with the Business Associations and entrepreneurs. Recently, the Provincial People's Committee also organized a dialogue conference to resolve the issue, but there have been no results so investors are very much looking forward to it.

WHA Nghe An 1 Industrial Park's infrastructure is complete, waiting to attract investors to lease land. Photo: NH

* Mr. Thai Dai Phong - Duc Phong Bamboo and Rattan Company Limited:There needs to be a roadmap for implementing fire prevention and fighting regulations in a reasonable manner and in accordance with business conditions.

The company has been operating in Nghi Phu Industrial Park for more than 10 years, but recently, through a general inspection and review by the fire prevention and fighting force, the company and many other businesses were proposed to be fined from 80 to 90 million VND and asked to stop production for correction. This is not really reasonable because when the business started operating, it fully complied with fire prevention standards; now if it has to supplement according to new standards, there must be a roadmap, not requiring immediate correction.

Mr. Thai Dai Phong - Director of Duc Phong Bamboo and Rattan Company Limited spoke at the meeting forum between Vinh City People's Committee and enterprises in March 2023. Photo: Nguyen Hai

Currently, land fund to invest in 500m water tank³/business is very costly and not feasible for businesses operating in small industrial clusters, if invested will affect other items and cause difficulties for businesses. The province and related departments and branches need to handle flexibly, possibly allowing businesses in the industrial cluster to invest in shared water tanks and pumps because a pump cluster of over 90 KVA can be used.