To ensure that the 'red carpet' promise isn't just empty words.

(Baonghean) - Inviting foreign investors to survey and explore the investment environment in Nghe An is difficult, but retaining them is an even more challenging issue. It's not simply a matter of affirming the slogan of "rolling out the red carpet," but the officials and civil servants involved in investment promotion need a real "revolution" in their working methods with investors.

Among FDI investors interested in exploring Nghe An, businesses from Japan are perhaps the most "meticulous," due to the careful and thorough nature characteristic of the Japanese. They do not easily decide to invest without thoroughly researching the situation and personally gathering information.

Therefore, some Japanese FDI projects spend years just conducting initial surveys. To impress such investors, local authorities must demonstrate enthusiastic support and long-term commitment to their partners through practical and concrete actions.

Provincial leaders assist a delegation of South Korean businesses in learning about the Vissai seaport project in Nghi Loc district. Photo: Thu Giang

For example, recently, through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Tsuno Food Technology Co., Ltd., which specializes in producing oil products extracted from rice bran and other by-products, conducted a survey to assess the rice bran supply capacity at several rice mills in Nghe An province.

Leaders from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development personally accompanied the delegation, visiting each factory, clarifying potential investors' questions about supply, price fluctuations, etc., and even personally taking rice bran samples for sensory analysis with the businesses. These seemingly simple details had a significant impact, demonstrating the most practical way to express enthusiasm and willingness to serve and meet the legitimate needs of businesses, leaving a deep impression on the delegation regarding the "truthful and honest" working style of the Nghe An provincial government.

For example, a few years ago, when a foreign company expressed interest in investing in the garment industry in Yen Thanh district but faced difficulties in land clearance, the district leaders personally worked with the company to research and resolve the procedural and paperwork bottlenecks, going directly to the site to meet with and persuade the households to agree to hand over the land as soon as possible.

Clearly, due to language barriers and differing legal environments between countries, leaving businesses to fend for themselves in similar situations would not only waste time and effort but could also discourage investors, even leading to disappointment due to the lack of local government involvement. Therefore, if we change the ingrained mindset of a "give-and-take" approach to businesses and truly view them as entities needing service, the results could far exceed expectations.

Sharing his views on this matter, Mr. Phan Van Tuyen, Deputy Secretary of the District Party Committee and Chairman of the Yen Thanh District People's Committee, said that rolling out the red carpet for investors must be combined with "removing obstacles," and to do so, leaders must personally be closely involved with their units, directly observing and understanding the specific difficulties faced by investors.

Japanese businesses visit the Thanh Chuong tea plantations. Photo: Thu Giang

Mr. Tuyen analyzed: Sometimes, the very documents we have issued inadvertently become "obstacles" to the progress of investment activities by businesses. These are like "nails" that subordinates cannot ignore; in such cases, superiors must grasp the situation, proactively "remove the nails," simplify procedures to help investors, and even, if possible, do it for them. Businesses pay taxes, so they are also indirectly paying the salaries of civil servants and officials; therefore, we must serve them attentively!

Sharing the same viewpoint, Mr. Hoang Van Khanh, Director of Nghe An Urban Environment Company Limited, representing the unit that has provided significant support to JET Corporation of Japan throughout its three-year research and preparation for investing in a new technology waste treatment plant in Nghe An, hopes that relevant departments and agencies, especially the Department of Planning and Investment, will continue to maintain and further develop the administrative reform achievements of the past period.

Mr. Khanh said: “JET Joint Stock Company has obtained the Investment Certificate issued by the province, but many legal procedures still need to be completed to put the new waste treatment line into operation. The deadline for the partner to complete the procedures and start construction of the plant is running out, so the most important issue now lies in the attitude and working methods of the relevant units. The more actively they support, both urging and assisting the enterprise, the sooner the project will be completed and bring benefits to the people.”

During a recent meeting with Hemaraj Group of Thailand – a company currently investing in a large-scale project in the province – Provincial Party Secretary Nguyen Dac Vinh seriously requested that relevant departments, agencies, and localities create all favorable conditions and contribute to the success of the enterprise. Ultimately, the success of Hemaraj, or any other foreign investor, is the success of the province, serving as the strongest evidence of Nghe An's effective and improved investment environment.

Japanese businesses visit Nafoods Company. Photo: Thu Giang

To realize this guiding principle, at the Spring 2017 Investor Meeting in Nghe An province, the provincial leaders directly committed to domestic and foreign businesses a set of solutions to significantly improve the investment environment, emphasizing aspects such as: simplifying administrative procedures and shortening the time for issuing Investment Registration Certificates; reforming tax filing processes, documents, and procedures; maximizing the effectiveness of e-government; strongly promoting the training of high-quality human resources; and the government working closely with and resolving difficulties and obstacles in land compensation and clearance…

With these concrete steps, in the coming time, as the province implements its plan to continue investment promotion activities with some traditional partners and further expand promotion to new partners such as Australia, there is every reason to believe that investment promotion and attraction in the province, the homeland of President Ho Chi Minh, will continue to see many new and promising developments.

Thu Giang