HaiPhong (VNA) - Enterprises in industrial parks and economic zones are importantdriving forces for industrial development in the northern port city of Hai Phong,a local official has said.

Chairmanof the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Van Tung affirmed this during a conferenceon July 5, which aimed to review the investment attraction into the city’s industrialparks and economic zones in the 2013-2018 period.

Over the last 25 years of development, the Hai Phong Economic Zone Authority(HEZA) lured 262 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects with a total capitalof 12.3 billion USD, accounting for nearly 80 percent of the FDI poured intothe city.

It also granted licences to 127 domestic projects worth over 97.3 trillion VND (4.3billion USD).

Notably, a new wave of investment from Japan and the Republic of Korea was pouredinto Hai Phong from 2013-2018 with the total investment of 9 billion USD, whichmade up 73 percent of the total FDI attracted by the city in the last 25 years.

Also in the reviewed period, domestic investors injected over 70,000 VND inprojects in the city, accounting for 70 percent of the city’s total domesticinvestment.

Director of the Hai Phong Economic Zone Authority PhamVan Moi said enterprises in industrial parks and economic zones have respectivelycontributed over 60 percent and more than 70 percent of Hai Phong’s industrialproduction value and export turnover, creating over 100,000 jobs for locals.

Their contribution has accounted for nearly 20 percent of the local budgetcollection, helping the city re-invest and improve its infrastructure system andsocial welfare.

With its efforts to improve investment and business environment and facilitate investors’operation in the city, Hai Phong’s Provincial Competitiveness Index in 2017ranked ninth among 63 provinces and cities nationwide, up 19 places compared tothat in 2015. It has been also namedamong top 10 attractiveinvestment destinations in Vietnam.

In recent years, the municipal authority has paid attention to developing andupgrading the transport infrastructure system to link the city with othernorthern localities.

The city plans to build passenger terminal 2 in Cat Bi International Airport, anumber of transport routes, ports in the Hai Phong Port, other infrastructure facilitiesserving tourism, education, entertainment centres and urban areas.

Chairman Tung took the occasion to call on investors to help the city promoteits image and introduce its investment environment to others.

More efforts will be done to accelerate administrative reform and enhance Statemanagement, thus swiftly addressing difficulties facing enterprises, especiallythose related to land clearance.

In the first two months of 2018, Hai Phong’s industrial productionindex went up 20.61 percent year on year.

Its export revenue reached 1.14 billion USD, up 24.14 percent. Up to 16 milliontonnes of cargo were handled at the Hai Phong Port, up 18.34 percent.

It contributed over 9.1 trillion VND (400 million USD) to the State budget.-VNA