Tien Giang master plan: marine and urban economy as growth engines

Tien Giang master plan: Marine and urban economy being growth engines

On the afternoon of July 12, the meeting to appraise the planning of Tien Giang province for 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, took place and was chaired by Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong.

Phuong stated that planning played a critical role in the socioeconomic development of the whole country, and of each sector, region, and location in particular. “The planning is a good opportunity to rearrange the new development space, create new motivation for the province's development, and remove the bottlenecks,” Phuong said.

He said that Tien Giang has a favourable location for economic, cultural, and tourism development, located on an important traffic axis, 70km far from Ho Chi Minh City and 100km from Can Tho city. It is the transshipment area between the Mekong Delta provinces and Ho Chi Minh City, both by waterway and road.

In 2011-2020, the growth of Tien Giang reached 6.55 per cent per year, higher than the general average (about 6.15 per cent of the region; or 6.21 per cent of the whole country). The economic growth rate in 2022 has seen a remarkable growth of 7.02 per cent on-year, which is a positive signal reflecting the determination and unceasing efforts of all government agencies, businesses, and the people

He said to continue promoting economic development, as well as solving social problems, adapting to climate change, and protecting the environment, Tien Giang needs to develop a high-quality master plan, utilising as much potential as possible, overcoming difficulties, and promoting selective investment attraction.

Nguyen Van Vinh, Chairman of Tien Giang People's Committee, said that they had several important opportunities for a breakthrough development in the Mekong River Delta.

Vinh said that after two years of building and asking for opinions, the province had a summary report on the planning of Tien Giang that was nearly 1,000 pages thick. In this, Tien Giang aims to become an industrial province with an industrial-service-agricultural economic structure, one of the growth poles of the Mekong Delta, and a bridge between the Mekong Delta and the southeast region.

"Of this, agriculture is an important and specific economic sector, developing Tien Giang province into a national tourism centre. The marine economy and the urban economy will be the driving force for growth," Vinh said.

Tien Giang will also develop various sociocultural fields; promote effective international integration; ensure national defence, security, social order, and safety; protect the environment; and cope with climate change effectively and sustainably.

The master plan sets out 22 economic, social, environmental, infrastructure, and defence and security targets. In particular, the growth rate in 2026-2030 will be high at 8-9 per cent per year.

GRDP per capita by 2030 will be about VND140-145 million ($6,000-6,200), the rate of urbanisation by 2030 will be about 45-47 per cent, transport infrastructure will be developed synchronously, and the digital economy will be promoted to support economic growth. The poverty rate will be reduced to about 1.1 per cent by 2025, and 0.7 per cent by 2030.

Breakthroughs will focus on solving bottlenecks, developing key infrastructure, developing industries, agriculture and green, smart cities, and tourism services, trade, logistics, and real estate market with administrative reform, well-preparing economic infrastructure to draw businesses and develop high-quality human resources.

"After being approved, the provincial planning will create new growth engines and values for Tien Giang province," said Vinh.

Tien Giang attractive to both domestic and foreign investors As a gateway linking the Mekong Delta, Ho Chi Minh City, and the southeastern region, Tien Giang province with its role as an important part of the southern key economic region is becoming increasingly attractive to domestic and foreign investors.

Tien Giang invests 650,000 USD in irrigation projects along coastal districts The Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang has invested 15 billion VND (650,000 USD) in 70 in-field irrigation projects on 27,000ha of farming land in the coastal districts of Go Cong Dong and Go Cong Tay during the 2020 - 21 dry season.

Tien Giang districts tap marine ecotourism potential Go Cong Dong and Tan Phu Dong districts in the Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang are focusing on the development of tourism. The spearhead local flora for the development to bring in more revenues is the districts' mangrove ecosystem, as well as its history and culture.