Actively attracting talents, promoting economic restructuring, improving the provincial competitiveness index (PCI) and enhancing the attractiveness of the investment environment have been the keys for Bac Lieu province to achieve its impressive socioeconomic development accomplishments in the past years. Vietnam Business Forum has an interview with Mr Pham Hoang Be, Chairman of Bac Lieu Provincial People’s Committee, on these efforts. Minh Tuan and Kim Bang report.
Bac Lieu province has recently announced its talent attraction policy to support the province with very high treatments. Could you tell us more about this policy? How will the province keep talents in the future?
Indeed, Bac Lieu province has a lot of weaknesses that drag on the overall development. One of these is the shortage of high-quality human resources, especially in fields that require specialised skills and techniques.
Stemming from this reality, the Bac Lieu government decided to apply talent attraction policies in order to strengthen its human resources. The province has approved the personnel recruitment plan for 2013, targeting voluntary civil servants and students. In 2013, Bac Lieu needs more than 100 talents for some branches like medicine, pharmacy, nursing, testing, refrigeration and thermal engineering, information technology, automotive technology, industrial electricity, agricultural processing, irrigation and architecture.
Regarding treatment mechanisms and policies, highly qualified personnel will be granted allowances if they have commit to service in the province for a certain period of time. Professors will be granted VND500 million in reward and housing if they have worked for the province at least seven years; associate professors will be granted VND400 million of reward and housing for the same duration of service; PhDs will be granted VND300 million of reward and housing if they have worked for the province at least five years; physicians of Level 2 will be granted VND200 million of reward and housing; masters will be granted VND100 million of reward and housing; and physicians of Level 1 will be granted VND50 million of reward for committed service of at least five years.
Post-graduate students will be granted allowances if they pledge service of at least five years. The duration for masters and physicians of Level 1 is five years and the duration for PhDs and physicians of Level 2 is seven years (PhDs will be granted VND200 million of reward and housing; physicians of Level 2 will be granted VND150 million and housing; masters and physicians of Level 1 are granted VND50 million). Apart from the above benefits, they will also be given priority to buy houses on instalment.
Besides, Bac Lieu province will provide financial support for all students during their study at universities if they pledge to work for the province after they graduate. The province has also invested in infrastructure to create good working conditions and environment for talents to strengthen their attachment to the locality.
Bac Lieu province’s provincial competitiveness index (PCI) ranked 7th in 2012, a rise of 32 spots from 2011. Would you be kind enough to share what is behind this success? How will Bac Lieu province maintain and promote its PCI achievements in 2013 and subsequent years?
The Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial People’s Committee issued many directives, decisions and plans to guide the consistent implementation of measures and policies to improve PCI. The province resolutely eliminates unnecessary, cumbersome procedures to provide the best conditions for investors to do business in the locality. The province defines that investors not only bring capital for economic development, employment and social welfare, but also bring new thinking of economics, market information, knowledge and experience for governments of all levels to perform better economic administration. Then, investors and businesses work better with public authorities, and this is an important factor in the improved PCI result.
To maintain and promote the PCI performance in 2013 and subsequent years, Bac Lieu authorities are ready to contact investors and specialists to listen to their suggestions and ideas for better policies in the spirit of “Administration must do whatever is difficult and let easy works for enterprises and investors do.” The province puts a premium on building up a force of devoted and responsible cadres and civil servants, increases dialogue with businesses; focuses on administrative procedure reform to boost transparency in information access, and promotes information channels to capture opinions from businesses and seek out timely solutions to their difficulties and problems.
Economic restructuring is determined as a key factor for Bac Lieu to tap its potential, promote advantages and stimulate sustainable economic growth. So, how has the province promoted economic restructuring?
To perform economic restructuring tasks, Bac Lieu province defines that accelerating investment for infrastructure development is one of the key tasks of the 14th tenure of the Provincial Party Committee. Particularly, Bac Lieu province will focus on improving traffic networks in Bac Lieu City, countryside traffic systems, ports, wharves and other infrastructure facilities.
To achieve its objectives, Bac Lieu province has concentrated on activities with a strong ripple effect. Specifically, it has focused on completing and carrying out master plans, sector-specific plans, and field-specific plans. It has aggressively implemented investment projects that serve as the driving force for local social economic development like the wind power plant (second phase), thermal power centre and industrial zones. The province has also enhanced external affairs, improved the investment environment and raised PCI to attract more investors into the locality. The province has effectively combined its internal resources with external investment and utilised investment support from the central government for socioeconomic development.
In the coming time, what treatments and conditions will the province provide enterprises to facilitate them to do business in the province and thus contribute more to local economic development?
Bac Lieu leaders appreciate the role and contribution of businesses to the locality. In the future, the province will create favourable conditions for enterprises to do business with peace of mind. The province will continue to direct credit institutions to follow the decisions of the Prime Minister and the Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam on credit growth and network expansion to serve production and business activities.
Besides, the province will flexibly apply financial and credit policies, support mechanisms and industrial zone infrastructure investment; decentralise the power of construction authorities to boost transparency and end overlapping; issue coordinating mechanisms in investment licensing; accelerate administrative reform in investment field; support personnel training for enterprises; and facilitate enterprises to expand business operations in the province and other localities in the country.
The province will also create new motivations for production and business activities, as well as investment attraction. Bac Lieu province is striving to have a high position in the Mekong Delta and achieve a good development level in the region.
Đăng ký: VietNam News