The northern province of Quang Ninh will focus its resources on building
Van Don island district into an international-standard marine economic
zone, in order to achieve the goal of developing the sea-based economy
in line with the national sea strategy until 2020.
Upon the formation of Van Don marine economic zone in the near future,
Quang Ninh will serve as a locomotive for the development of the key
northern economic zone and an important gateway for international
cooperation.
The island district is selected for its
advantageous conditions in terms of geographic location, natural
conditions and marine resources.
Covering 2,171.33
sq. km including 1,620 sq. km of sea in Bai Tu Long Bay, which is near
the world heritage site of Ha Long Bay, the district has a population
of 420,000 distributing on more than 20 islands, the largest of which
is Cai Bau.
Blessed with scenic seascape and
beautiful beaches and home to valuable archaeological and cultural
sites, the island district has a great potential for the development of
high-quality eco-tourism.
At the same time, the
marine economy in Van Don has a long history dating back to the Ly
dynasty (1149-), fed by rich and diverse aquatic resources of high
economic values. The island district was known as one of the country’s
busiest commercial ports – one of the starting points of the Silk Road
at sea.
Moreover, Van Don district is situated in
the two economic corridors connecting provinces of Vietnam and China
; and the coastal economic belt around the Gulf of Tonkin in the
framework of the development cooperation between Vietnam and China.
This is a reason why as early as in August 2009, the Prime Minister
approved a master plan for building Van Don Economic Zone until 2020.
The zone has since then recorded significant
development, with an annual growth rate of 16.8 percent per annum during
the period of 2007-2011.
A total of 79 projects with combined registered capital of 9.8 trillion VND (460 million USD) are operating in the zone.
In the coming time, Quang Ninh will focus on finalising socio-economic
development plans for Van Don. At the same time, it will issue suitable
policies to call for investment to carry out key infrastructure works
serving the economic zone such as the Van Don International
Airport, a large-scale complex for tourism, services and recreation,
National Road 4B, Van Tien bridge and Van Hoa port.
Meanwhile, the province plans to seek capital from Official
Development Assistance (ODA), foreign direct investment (FDI), the State
budget and Government bonds for essential projects on road building and
upgrading as well as the expansion of the national power grid to
islands.-VNA