Long An province started to develop industry relatively soon in comparison with other Mekong Delta provinces. Serving as a gateway to Ho Chi Minh City from the Mekong Delta, the province has conditions to develop industry on both directions: receiving technologies and industrial establishments reallocated from Ho Chi Minh City thanks to advantages in geographical location, land, labour and material availability; and developing agricultural and aquatic product processing industries thanks to its easy gathering of inputs from the Mekong Delta. In addition, with its proximity to the Vietnam-Cambodian border, the province has favourable conditions and potentials to develop finished industry, assembly, processing and warehousing at the service of border economic development.
During the past 10 years, the industrial growth rate of Long An province is always high, helping the province’s economic structure to shift in the right direction. The development of key industries entails the significant rise in industrial production value from VND382 million per worker in 2010, an increase of VND75 million. This is an average labour productivity in the country but it is higher than many Mekong Delta provinces. Along with Can Tho, Long An is one of two localities to start industrialisation quite early in the Mekong Delta. Presently, the industrial production value of Long An ranks second out of 13 provinces in the Mekong Delta, just slightly smaller than Can Tho but much larger than the next standings like Ca Mau, Dong Thap and An Giang. In relation to the southern key economic zone, Long An province’s industrial output value is greater that of Tay Ninh and Binh Phuoc provinces.
Annual industrial production growth is always high (over 23 per cent in the 2006-2010 period). In 2011, its industrial production value reached VND23,113 billion, up 17.7 per cent against 2010 and VND26,641 billion in 2012, up 14.7 per cent over 2011. Tapping rich agricultural and aquatic resources in the province and in the region, the processing industry of Long An province is being diversely developed, with added production value rising year after year. The processing sector always accounts for over 95 per cent of the province’s industrial production value. In processing sector, food and drink processing makes the greatest contribution with over 40 per cent.
To attract investment capital for industrial development, the province has planned and invested in infrastructure systems in industrial zones and attracted a lot of domestic and foreign industrial investors. In addition to encouraging technological and equipment investment and innovation, the province focuses on improving the quality of human resources to meet employment requirements of businesses in the locality and gradually train rural workers for industrial and economic zones. Dang Van Lop, Director of Department of Industry and Trade, said, the industrial investment in Long An province is increasing since the consumption market is expanded, products are diversified, quality is enhanced, and the prestige is boosted domestically and internationally.”
In the long term, the Long An industrial development strategy focuses on driving industries to quicken but ensure the synchrony, balance and efficiency of industrial production with material zone development and product commercialisation. The province gives priority to investing in high-tech, advanced, clean industries as well as supporting industries.
The province strives to maintain industrial growth at 13 – 15 per cent a year in the 2011 – 2015 period and 15 – 17 per cent in the 2016 – 2020 period. Long An expects an average annual growth of 13 – 16 per cent in 15 years ending 2020. By 2020, with the orientation that Long An will become an industrialised province, the Region 2 will account for 52 – 55 per cent by that time (processing industries will make up 45 – 48 per cent). In the industrial structure, the province will focus on key processing industries fields and raise the proportion of processing industries to over 90 per cent of industrial production value in 2020. The key industries are food, beverage, engineering, plastics, leather and electronics.
The province will expand industrial zone area to 14,808 ha by 2020 and investors will register to lease 35 per cent of this area. As regards industrial urban construction, the province will have five key economic zones, namely Tan An City, Ben Luc, Can Giuoc, Can Duoc and Duc Hoa districts) surrounded by industrial logistics zones, satellite townships, and service zones.
Thanh Trúc
Đăng ký: VietNam News