Obstacles to attracting foreign direct investment in northern cities and provinces came under the spotlight at a conference in Hanoi on Dec. 21. Addressing the gathering, the director of the Ministry of Planning and Investment's Foreign Investment Agency, Do Nhat Hoang, also called for closer co-operation among ministries, agencies and local governments in administering foreign-invested projects. Hoang also suggested local authorities budget sufficient resources to promoting investment. "A specific and feasible list of projects calling for investment will enable us to attract more foreign investors," he added, noting that the ministry was currently drawing up a list of projects calling for foreign investment until 2015. Representatives from Hai Phong Department of Planning and Investment told the conference that the northern port city had seen an encouraging result in attracting foreign investment this year and that 27 existing projects had registered to increase their levels of … [Read more...] about Northern reviews foreign investment
Foreign investment review agency
New editor-in-chief for Vietnam Investment Review
Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh has officially appointed Le Trong Minh as the new editor-in-chief of Vietnam Investment Review’s press office. Effective from December 1, 2015, Minh will replace Dr Nguyen Anh Tuan, who served as VIR’s editor-in-chief since January 2007. At the conferral ceremony, which was conducted at the office’s headquarters in Hanoi, Vinh affirmed that the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) was a consulting agency for both the party and the government. Over recent years, the government had been pinning its hopes on the MPI for various important tasks. Vinh said that VIR’s editorial board and staff should discern the office’s role and status as the press office of the MPI. As such, VIR must contain insightful articles reflecting the country’s socio-economic development, while providing a helpful commentary on national policies. Vinh also noted that Vietnam currently has had quite a few well-known … [Read more...] about New editor-in-chief for Vietnam Investment Review
Improving efficiency of attracting and using foreign investment capital
(MPI Portal) - This is the topic of the Workshop "Orientation of improving efficiency of attracting and using foreign investment capital" which was held in the morning on May 16th in Hanoi by Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) in collaboration with the Association of Foreign Investment Enterprises. Deputy Minister of MPI Dang Huy Dong attended and gave a speech at the Workshop. Deputy Minister Dang Huy Dong said that in more than 25 years of innovation, since Congress issued the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam in 1987, FDI inflows have become an important force to promote process of international integration and economic restructuring towards industrialization and modernization. In addition to the positive results achieved, in attracting and management of FDI remains many disadvantages to be overcome soon, including problems relating to administrative procedures of investment - business. "Therefore, reviewing, evaluating fully the difficulties and obstacles in investment … [Read more...] about Improving efficiency of attracting and using foreign investment capital
Foreign investment dives in crisis
The Hanoi Times - Foreign direct investment pledged in the first nine months of the year was worth US$12.54 billion, a mere fifth of the amount recorded in the same period last year. Of this, $7.67 billion will flow into 583 new projects and the remaining into 168 existing projects, according to the Foreign Investment Agency. The investment in new projects is just 14.3 per cent of the amount during the same period last year, while there has been an increase of 7 per cent in funds flowing into existing projects. Phan Huu Thang, head of the department, said despite the steep fall from last year it is a positive figure given the global economic recession. The hotel and restaurant businesses attracted the largest investments, at nearly $4.57 billion in both new and existing projects, followed by the property sector with $3.65 billion. Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province topped the country in attracting investment with $6.6 billion, followed by Binh Duong with $2.45 billion, HCM City with $1.14 … [Read more...] about Foreign investment dives in crisis
Foreign investment increase cannot hide serious quality problems: experts
Vietnam has attracted US$211 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) over the past 25 years, but more than half this amount has not been disbursed A rise in FDI this year is welcome news in an otherwise gloomy economic landscape, but Vietnam still has many things to do before it can attract quality projects, economists say. According to the latest report from the Foreign Investment Agency with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, Vietnam attracted FDI worth US$8.2 billion in the first four months, an increase of 17 percent against the same period last year. However, several economists told Vietweek that there is a need to look beyond figures. They noted that in many localities, authorities have recently revoked the licenses of many projects, as investors failed to start them as they had committed. Authorities in the southern province of Dong Nai, for instance, in March withdrew the license of the Nhon Trach new urban area, in which Malaysian-owned Berjaya Leisure … [Read more...] about Foreign investment increase cannot hide serious quality problems: experts