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Politburo member Phan Dien said the port city of Hai Phong should strive to become a centre for industry, trade, tourism and services.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the country’s largest exhibition hall in the city on Wednesday, Dien said Hai Phong should become a centre of economic growth in northern Viet Nam.
He lauded Hai Phong for mobilising investment and boosting development by encouraging construction projects including the hall.
"The city should promote itself to make better use of those projects already in place," Dien said.
The hall, officially opened by President Tran Duc Luong, is a multi-storey building built to resemble a ship, at a cost of VND167 billion(US$10.6million).
The hall can hold 1,000 goods kiosks and 15,000 people. More than 600 domestic and foreign enterprises, companies and firms have registered to join the hall’s first trade fair.
One Hai Phong official said, the exhibition hall is a good place for international trade fairs.
The six-day fair will include special events on tourism, Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) cultures and a number of seminars on trade promotion and co-operation between key economic zones.
Other activities including Hai Phong Youth Day, a food fair, and a traditional trade exhibition will be held before the trade fair concludes next Monday.
In concert with the trade fair, the municipal People’s Committee organised a conference on promoting investment, trade and tourism, inviting foreign and domestic enterprises who participated in the fair.
At the conference, representatives from the city’s departments of planning and investment trade and tourism presented the city’s investment advantages.
Investors met with Hai Phong authorities to discuss solutions to the city’s investment environment shortcomings.
Foreign investors with successfully established businesses in the city shared their experiences with other participants.
At the conference, the city granted an investment license to the Hai Phong ChinFon Cement Company, one of the city’s most successful enterprises, to establish a second cement production line.
Over the past year, the city has issued a number of preferential policies to lure investors including a reduction in land rental prices,15 years of tax exemptions and implementation of the one-door policy to decrease bureaucracy when granting investment licences.
Hai Phong is seen as a a growing city with great potential and favourable conditions to attract both overseas and domestic investors, participants to the conference said.
Economic Review - (17/05/2004)
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