ZURICH: A delegation from Vietnam’s Bac Ninh province led by its vice-chairman of the People’s Committee Dao Quang Khai, has introduced the province’s industrial infrastructure and vision for foreign investments at the business seminar “Bac Ninh – Where to base your production in Vietnam” held in Zurich, Switzerland.
The seminar, organised by Bac Ninh People’s Committee in collaboration with the Embassy of Vietnam in Switzerland, the Swiss-Vietnamese Business Gateway (SVBG) and the Swiss-Asian Chamber of Commerce (SACC), was held last Tuesday with attendees representing more than 30 companies in Switzerland and neighbouring countries such as Austria, Belgium, Germany and Italy, as well as business associations and universities in Switzerland.
Greeting the delegation from Bac Ninh to Zurich, the largest economic-financial centre of Switzerland, Vietnam Ambassador to Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein, Phung The Long said: “This seminar is an opportunity for leaders of Bac Ninh Province, one of Vietnam’s leading localities in attracting foreign investment, and Swiss and neighbouring businessmen to exchange information and share experiences to further promote trade and investment co-operation.”
Vice-chairman Dao Quang Khai welcomed interested businesses attending the seminar to learn more about Bac Ninh and to seek and identify potentials and opportunities for cooperation and investment in Bac Ninh and Viet Nam.
Khai emphasised that the province with the smallest area (823 sq km) in Vietnam and a population of 1.5 million people has a particularly important position and role in the capital region and is one of the seven provinces constituting the Northern Economic Region of the country.
Adjacent to the capital Hanoi, 32 km from Noi Bai International Airport and 90 km from Hai Phong seaport, the province is very conveniently located for transportation and import-export of goods.
Over the last 25 years, its economy has achieved an average growth of 13.9% a year. Nowadays, Bac Ninh has become a high-tech industrial centre with industry and construction accounting for 76.5% of its economy, and ranks high among the leading provinces and cities of Vietnam as assessed through several socio-economic indicators, such as manufacturing output; export turnover; income per capita; provincial competitiveness index; provincial green index; and satisfaction index with public administration services.
“Having achieved the above results, we treasure the contribution of the foreign direct investment sector in the overall development of Bac Ninh Province,” Khai said.
The province has granted investment registration to 1,975 valid projects from 39 countries and territories by July, with a total registered capital of US$24.44bil, ranking seventh in the country in terms of accumulated foreign direct investment.
Big corporations that have built factories in Bac Ninh include Samsung, Foxconn, Canon, PepsiCo, Amkor, GoerTek and Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park.
There are four projects by three Swiss high-tech manufacturers with a total investment of US$109.34mil in the province, namely: ABB, which manufactures electricity distribution equipment and solutions; Sika, which produces additives for use in construction; and Oerlikon, which specialises in metal engineering and coatings. — Viet Nam News/ANN