Laws of Vietnam

THE PRIME MINISTER

DECIDES:

Article 1.- To approve the master plan on socio-economic development of Binh Duong province up to 2020 (referred to as the plan for short) with the following principal contents:

1. Development viewpoints

The master plan on socio-economic development of Binh Duong province up to 2020 aims to build Binh Duong province into one with fast and comprehensive economic development, ensuring economic growth and proper settlement of social affairs, hunger eradication and poverty alleviation and continuously improving the people's material and spiritual life.

To focus on taking advantage of the province's geographical location and its cooperation with other provinces in the southern key economic region and Ho Chi Minh City for socio-economic development.

On the basis of further administrative reforms, to actively intensify international integration, attract domestic and foreign investment capital and advanced technologies for development of key industries; to raise production scale and quality of key products and services based on the province's comparative advantages; to quickly create high-quality goods capable of penetrating into the world market (especially the ASEAN market) and, at the same time, attach importance to the domestic market, especially Ho Chi Minh City and provinces in the southern key economic region.

To increase economic efficiency in association with social development on the basis of making targeted investments. To prioritize investment in branches and domains with labor, natural resource and raw material advantages of surrounding provinces and areas in order to create jobs, improve productivity and increase income for people. To narrow the socio-economic gap between areas and between northern districts and southern districts of the province.

To build a synchronous infrastructure network with rational spatial arrangement. To pay special attention to developing a modern road system up to standards of advanced countries in the region and the world. To carry out industrial development in association with urban and service development with a view to boosting economic growth and sustainable development.

To closely combine socio-economic development with environmental protection. To make investment so as to raise economic efficiency of ecological gardens in Lai Thieu area and of ecological areas along Saigon river. To create landscape along the line of natural ecological balance and sustainable development.

To closely combine socio-economic development with the maintenance of defense and security in the locality.

2. Development objectives

a/ General objectives:

To strongly step up economic and labor restructuring toward industrial and service development. To maintain an economic growth rate higher than that of the southern key economic region; to attach importance to developing housing, human resource training and development and healthcare services. To complete the industrialization process and achieve balanced and sustainable development in the period after 2015.

b/ Specific targets:

To develop and restructure the economy along the line of increasing the proportion of industries and services to total GDP. Specifically:

Average growth rates of branches and domains (%/year)

- Import and export turnover will reach USD 16,189 million by 2010, of which USD 8,662 million will be export turnover. These figures will be USD 24,000 million and USD 14,000 million by 2015 and USD 40,000 million and USD 25,000 million by 2020.

- Labor restructuring will be effected together with economic restructuring toward reducing labor in low-productivity sectors and increasing labor in high productivity and efficiency sectors. The proportion of labor in agriculture, forestry and fishery to the total workforce will drop to 20% by 2010, 14% by 2015 and 10% by 2020; the proportion of labor in industry and construction will rise to 45% by 2010, 48% by 2015 and then reduce to 45% by 2020; the proportion of labor in services will constantly increase from 35% by 2010 to 38% by 2015 and 45% by 2020.

- The urbanization rate will reach 40% by 2010, 50% by 2015 and 75% by 2020. By 2020, Binh Duong will become a centrally run grade-I urban center.

- To well implement target programs on development of national infrastructure systems in the province and social development programs on education and training, hunger eradication and poverty alleviation and settlement of other social issues.

- To firmly maintain political security and social order and safety in all circumstances.

3. Major development orientations:

a/ Economics:

- Industries, cottage industries and handicrafts:

To continue attracting investment in industrial development along the line of diversifying products, attaching importance to industries of a high technological content or using home-made raw materials. To develop industries up to advanced and modern level, turning out products of high competitiveness in the domestic and overseas markets. By 2020, Binh Duong will become a big industrial center in the country and region. The value of industrial production will increase by 30.6%/year on an average in the 2006-2010 period, 26% in the 2011-2015 period and 24.1% in the 2016-2020 period. The localization rate will increase from 55% in 2010 to 60% and 70% by 2015 and 2020, respectively. To reduce the processing proportion. To gradually increase the high-technology content in industrial products. To increase the proportion of clean industries from the current level of 20% to 40%, 50% and 60% by 2010, 2015 and 2020, respectively.

To strongly develop small- and medium-sized industries and traditional trades with a view to creating jobs for rural laborers and attracting laborers from other provinces.

To consolidate and raise the efficiency of industrial parks in the province, to focus on industries of high localization rates. By 2020, the province will have 31 industrial parks with a total area of 9,360.5 hectares and 23 industrial clusters with a total area of 2,704 hectares.

- Trade and services:

To develop the domestic market through expanding trade relations with Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Ba Ria -Vung Tau and Binh Phuoc provinces and big industrial parks in the southern key economic region, Mekong River delta and other regions. For foreign markets, to concentrate efforts on developing key products and exported products produced in industrial parks in order to raise the export value of these industrial parks and products processed from rubber, cashew, and woodworks. At the same time, to attach importance to the import and supply of supplies and technological devices for the manufacture of goods to serve people's life.

Domestic trade will increase by 18% in the 2006-2010 period and by 15% in the 2011-2020 period. The total value of retailed goods will reach VND 21 billion by 2010 and VND 85 billion by 2020. To build permanent marketplaces in towns, townships and some communes and population clusters. Transport services will be gradually developed to meet production and daily-life needs. The transport value will grow at an annual rate of 26% in the 2006-2010 period, 25% in the 2011-2015 period and 24% in the 2016-2020 period.

Export will be boosted to achieve the total value of USD 8,662 million by 2010, USD 14,000 million by 2015 and over USD 25,000 million by 2020. The proportion of export value of products of light industries, cottage industries and handicrafts will account for 80-85% of the total export value. The total import value will be USD 7,527 million by 2010, USD 10,000 million by 2015 and USD 15,000 million by 2020.

To provide housing services for low-income workers in industrial parks; and develop a housing market for medium- and high-income earners in the direction of building ecological houses in Lai Thieu area and along Saigon river. In the first phase up to 2010, to construct these houses in the area from Lai Thieu to Thu Dau Mot and, in the next phase, to expand the construction up to Dau Tieng lake in order to tap ecological advantages of the area along Saigon river.

Tourism turnover will increase by 13.5% on a yearly average in the 2006-2010 period, around 13% in the 2011-2015 period and 12% in the 2016-2020 period and reach the value of VND 210 billion, 387 billion and 682 billion by 2010, 2015 and 2020, respectively.

- Agriculture-forestry-fishery:

To develop high-yield agriculture in a stable and sustainable manner on the basis of rationally exploiting geographical and resource advantages while conserving and protecting the ecological environment. To conduct agricultural and rural economic restructuring in the direction of producing high-value goods. To develop a new countryside in the process of industrialization and modernization. To apply biotechnologies and use plant varieties and animal breeds of high yield and high quality in order to meet the increasing market demand. To invest in the development of areas under perennial industrial trees such as rubber trees; areas under fruit trees, vegetables, ornamental trees and areas for raising cattles and poultry. To develop forestry towards forest zoning and protection; to plant scattered trees on land areas along roads, canals and in households' gardens. To develop fishery according to aquaculture plannings, closely combining the rearing, preservation and processing of aquatic products with environmental management and protection.

Agriculture will be restructured toward a larger proportion of forestry and fishery. The proportion of agricultural added value will account for 90% of the total added value of agriculture-forestry-fishery by 2010 and reduce to 75% by 2020. The proportion of farming products will gradually reduce from 56% in 2010 to 48% and 42% by 2015 and 2020, respectively. Correspondingly, the proportion of husbandry products will increase from 37% in 2010 to 42% by 2015 and 46% by 2020.

Agriculture-forestry- fishery will attract 20% of the total workforce by 2010, 14% by 2015 and 10% by 2020.

b/ Technical infrastructure:

- Roads:

To develop roads in the direction of connecting with a system of modern national highways up to regional standards, international airports, Thi Vai-Vung Tau port cluster and other technical infrastructure. To develop trunk roads from Binh Duong avenue to Hoa Lu border-gate, from Binh Duong avenue to Dong Xoai, from Binh Duong avenue to Dau Tieng and My Phuoc - Tan Van expressway. To closely coordinate with the Ministry of Transport in building belt-road 3, belt-road 4, and Thuong Tan - Tan Hung - Hung Hoa road. To prepare for the connection to a metro system from the center of Ho Chi Minh City to Thu Dau Mot after 2020. Provincial- and district-level roads will be connected to trunk roads and belt-roads in order to ensure smooth travel to industrial parks and clusters and agricultural areas. To bring into full play the efficiency of railways in the locality.

For waterway navigation: To continue dredging fairways in Saigon, Dong Nai and Thi Tinh rivers; to renovate, upgrade and build a system of ports in service of transport, tourism and life.

- Electricity and water supply:

To make coordinated investment in the upgrading and building of electricity and water supply systems so as to meet production and daily-life needs, especially in industrial parks and urban centers. The annual average electricity growth rate will be 24% in the 2006-2010 period and reduce to 13% in the 2011-2015 period. The total electricity demand will be 6,700 GWh and 12,400 GWh in the period up to 2010 and 2015, respectively. Electricity load for production and daily-life activities will account for 20% and 18% of the total load in the period up to 2015 and 2020, respectively. Electricity load for tourist development will account for 36% of the total load in the 2006-2015 period and be kept at 30% in the period after 2015. By 2010, 247,000 m3 of water will be treated a day and by 2020, 462,000 m3 of water will be treated a day. To ensure that 95-97% of rural households will have access to electricity and clean water by 2010 and this figure will increase to 100% by 2020.

- Communication:

To develop a modern and comprehensive post and telecommunications sector according to digitalization and automation standards in order to ensure smooth communication within the province and connection to the southern key economic region. The telephone density per 100 inhabitants will be 42 telephone sets by 2010, 50 telephone sets by 2015 and 60 telephone sets by 2020; to quickly increase the number of Internet users.

c/ Development of socio-economic sectors:

- Population:

The annual population growth rate will be 4.2% in the 2006-2010 period, 5.9% in the 2011-2015 period and 4.6% in the 2015-2020 period, in which the natural population growth rate will decrease while mechanical growth will be maintained at a rational rate. The population is expected to reach 1.2 million by 2010, 1.6 million by 2015 and around 2 million by 2020 (the population size of grade-I urban centers).

- Education and training:

Education and training development constitutes a strategic mission aiming to qualitatively and quantitatively improve human resources, meeting the demand for strong development of production. Education must be developed in a coordinated manner at all grades, from pre-school and primary education to lower secondary and upper secondary education. To continue building kindergartens and primary schools in communes, wards and townships where these establishments have not yet been built. To separate lower secondary education from upper secondary education according to the model applied uniformly throughout the country by the end of 2007. By 2010, each commune or ward will have at least one lower secondary school. To continue building permanent schools, striving for the target that all schools in the province will satisfy national standards on teaching facilities.

To develop professional secondary education, job training and university education in a rational manner on the basis of planning the network of universities, colleges and vocational schools in the province. To strictly adhere to the policy of socialization of training activities, encouraging all economic sectors to actively participate in human resource training and development in different forms, public, private and people-founded. To attach importance to training a workforce of high technical qualification for hi-tech industries.

To develop job training to meet the demands of industrial parks in and outside the province, and for export.

- Medical services and healthcare for the people:

To develop and perfect the medical network from provincial to grassroots level, ensuring the implementation of the State's healthcare programs and policies. To continuously improve the quality of community healthcare services and properly provide primary healthcare for the people. To consolidate and develop a system of preventive medicine. To attach importance to the development of local pharmaceutical material sources in service of medical treatment, especially in traditional medicine. To strive to reduce the proportion of malnourished children to below 10% by 2010 and 0% by 2020. The average life expectancy will be 75 years by 2010, 77 years by 2015 and 80 years by 2020.

To boost socialization in healthcare activities. To increase investment in the development of the health sector's material foundations, equipment and human resources. To step by step modernize diagnosis and treatment equipment for provincial- and district-level hospitals up to national and international standards. To invest in the construction of a number of regional general hospitals in service of foreign specialists and industrial parks. To promote investment in building a number on non-public hospitals in order to attract sources from various economic sectors for investment in the development of the health sector, meeting the increasing and diversified needs of local and regional people and foreigners. The ratio of medical workers will be 27/10,000 inhabitants, including eight doctors of medicine by 2010, 38/10,000 inhabitants, including 15 doctors of medicine by 2015. By 2020, this ratio will be 55/10,000 inhabitants, including 30 doctors of medicine.

To strongly develop high-quality establishments in order to provide better health services to the people. To attach importance to the construction of a general hospital and an obstetric hospital up to international standards in order to lessen the burden for big hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City, contributing to quickly increasing the structure of social security services in the province after 2015.

- Culture, information, physical training and sports:

To develop and raise the quality of culture and information, physical training and sports activities. To attach importance to developing these activities in rural areas. To consolidate and develop libraries in different places from urban centers to rural areas. To improve the quality of radio and television programs; to build the Radio and Television Station of the province and its relay stations in compatibility with practical conditions and in accordance with the general planning on development of the national radio and television system. To develop and consolidate conservation and museum activities aiming to preserve, restore and promote the value of cultural heritages, historical relics and national identity.

To strive for the target that by 2010, 91% of households will be recognized as cultured households and 73% of population quarters will reach cultural standards. By 2020, these figures will be 96% and 85%.

- Employment, hunger eradication, poverty alleviation and policies towards the meritorious

The labor structure will change to suit the economic structure toward creating a movement of labor from low-productivity sectors to high-productivity and high-efficiency sectors. Jobs will be created annually so that the unemployment rate will increase to under 4.4% by 2010; 4.2% by 2015 and 4% by 2020; and by 2020, trained laborers will account for more than 70% of the total workforce.

To increase laborers' income on the basis of speeding up development growth to a rate equal to and higher than the average rate of the southern key economic region by 2015 and 2020, respectively. To coordinatedly implement hunger eradication and poverty alleviation programs and project, creating opportunities for the poor to benefit from support policies on credit provision, employment and basic social services and, at the same time, increasing their awareness and sense of responsibility and self-reliance to escape from poverty. To care for and assist households with social policy beneficiaries and people with meritorious services to the revolution.

d/ Environment-related issues:

The general viewpoint is that economic growth must be associated with social development and environmental protection, striving for the target of preventing and minimizing environmental pollution. First of all, it is necessary to assess water drainage and environmental sanitation plannings in the process of approving and licensing investment projects. Water drainage systems and environmental sanitation in industrial parks must satisfy set standards. By 2010, 90% of total solid waste volume will be collected, the renovation and upgrading of water drainage and wastewater treatment systems and garbage-collection systems will be basically completed according to planning; 50% of population quarters and industrial clusters will have water drainage and wastewater treatment systems and garbage-collection systems according to planning. The implementation of the approved planning on water drainage and environmental sanitation in South Binh Duong area will be completed. By 2020, these issues will have been completely and coordinatedly solved.

e/ Socio-economic development in association with defense and security:

To build the province, together with its districts, into a firm defense area. To revise plannings and adjust land areas reserved for defense and security so as to meet requirements of defense areas and create favorable conditions for socio-economic development. To timely prevent and effectively struggle against hostile forces, promptly settle disputes among the people and prevent the occurrence of hotpoints in the locality; to adopt appropriate measures so as to reduce traffic accidents.

4. Plan on territorial organization for socio-economic development

a/ Urban areas:

The urbanization process will be carried out quickly towards modernization, with economic growth and economic restructuring playing the leading role. The urbanization rate will reach 40% by 2010, 50% by 2015 and 75% by 2020. Urban population is forecasted to reach 418,000 by 2010 and 1.5 million by 2020. To concentrate efforts on developing urban points in towns and townships of great importance such as Thu Dau Mot, Binh Duong industrial-service-residential complexes, district capitals and urban centers near industrial parks. To expand vicinities and urban centers after the model of rural urbanization on the basis of improving infrastructure connection and social services. To strive to develop Binh Duong province into a centrally run grade-I urban center by 2020. Binh Duong city will be connected with Ho Chi Minh city and Bien Hoa city to form a mega city of the country.

b/ Rural areas:

To develop rural economy in a harmonious manner, gradually reduce the gap between rural and urban areas. To strongly develop rural industries, cottage industries and handicrafts. To restore traditional trade villages. To form areas under vegetables, industrial trees and fruit trees which will supply food for cities, towns, townships, urban centers and industrial parks and raw materials for processing and export. To increase investment in rural areas by attracting resources, developing private economy and applying scientific and technological achievements to production.

c/ Sub-regional development:

Urban space will be developed in the direction of rural urbanization and economic restructuring from agriculture to non-agricultural sectors.

Region I (South Binh Duong) will be for urban, industrial and service development in association with urbanization; have a total area of 538 km2, accounting for 19.96% of the total land area, and a population of 1,248,000, accounting for 62.4% of the total population. Region I consists of Thu Dau Mot urban center, Thuan An and Di An urban centers, and Ben Cat and Tan Uyen new urban centers.

Region II (North Binh Duong) will be for agricultural and rural development; have a land area of 2,157.54 km2, accounting for 80.04% of the total land area, and a population of 752,000, accounting for 37.6% of the total population. To pay attention to the development of agriculture and processing of agricultural products for export. Region II consists of two new districts (to be separated from Tan Uyen and Ben Cat districts), and Phu Giao and Dau Tieng districts.

d/ Urban development roadmap:

Thu Dau Mot township will become a grade-III urban center by 2007 and a grade-II urban center by 2010. By 2010, Binh Duong province will have one provincial city (grade-II urban center) and three towns and four districts with 62 communes, 31 wards and 10 townships. By 2020, Binh Duong will become a centrally run grade-I urban center with six urban districts, four rural districts, 40 communes, 60 wards and 13 townships.

5. Solutions for implementation of the Plan:

a/ Building strong administrations at all levels:

To boost administrative reform, raising the quality of the contingent of cadres and civil servants and clearly defining the powers of agencies and administrations at all levels; to enhance administrative discipline, combating bureaucracy, corruption and wastefulness while ensuring people's democracy rights. This is an important solution to raising the effectiveness of socio-economic management by administrations and agencies at all levels and facilitating the attraction of resources for development investment.

b/ Investment capital:

The investment capital need is estimated at VND 34,955 billion for the 2006-2010 period, VND 70,328 billion for the 2011-2015 period and VND 129,916 billion for the 2016-2020 period. The total investment capital for the whole 2006-2020 period will be around VND 236,000 billion (calculated at 1994 prices).

In order to satisfy the investment capital need, attractive capital mobilization and investment attraction policies must be formulated for each project group and, at the same time, investment orientations must be well drawn up together with investment promotion policies. To boost the development of enterprises of all economic sectors; to attach importance to attracting investment from enterprises outside the province, especially great economic groups and enterprises. To mobilize the utmost capital from land funds for urban development, industries, cottage industries and handicrafts, attaching importance to attracting foreign investment capital, developing the financial market, and accelerating socialization in the health, educational, cultural and sports domains.

c/ Association and coordination between Binh Duong province and Ho Chi Minh City and other provinces in the southern key economic region.

In order to develop in an efficient, balanced and sustainable manner, Binh Duong province should coordinate closely with Ho Chi Minh City and other provinces and cities in the southern key economic region in implementing programs, mechanisms and policies on attraction of foreign investment capital, on industrial development and development of industrial parks and eco-tourism in areas along Saigon river, on information supply and exchange, on development of traffic and transport services, on the raising of the capacity of financial and banking services, education and training, on technology transfer and on housing for medium- and high-income earners in Lai Thieu area and along Saigon river.

d/ Intensifying the research and application of scientific and technological advances to production and life.

e/ Formulating a system of proper measures to encourage and boost the development of non-state economic sectors.

f/ Boosting investment promotion activities and expanding domestic and overseas markets for industrial products.

g/ Formulating appropriate policies for attracting, using, training and developing human resources to meet demands.

h/ Organizing the implementation of the master plan: To publicize the master plan after it is approved; to study and implement the mater plan in a coordinated and comprehensive manner; to draw up plans so as to ensure the effective implementation of the master plan; and regularly update, amend and supplement the master plan when necessary.

Article 2.- The Decision approving the master plan on socio-economic development of Binh Duong province up to 2020 will serve as a basis for the elaboration, approval and implementation of specialized plannings (construction planning, land-use plannings and plans and other specialized plannings) and investment projects in Binh Duong province.

Article 3.- To assign the People's Committee of Binh Duong province to base itself on socio-economic development objectives, tasks and orientations of the province stated in this master plan to coordinate with concerned ministries and branches in directing the elaboration, approval and implementation of:

- Strategic environmental impact assessment reports;

- Adjustments to plannings on development of the system of urban centers and population quarters, construction plannings, land-use plans and plannings, and branch development plannings so as to ensure comprehensive and coordinated development.

- Studying, formulating and promulgating or proposing competent state agencies to promulgate a number of mechanisms and policies in response to development requirements of the province in each period in order to attract and mobilize resources for the implementation of the master plan.

Article 4.- To assign concerned ministries and branches to assist the People's Committee of Binh Duong province in formulating the abovesaid plannings; study, formulate and propose competent state agencies to promulgate a number of mechanisms and policies in response to socio-economic development requirements of the province in each period in order to mobilize and effectively use resources, encourage and attract investment so as to ensure the fulfillment of the province's socio-economic development objectives, tasks and orientations approved in the master plan. To accelerate the investment in and implementation of regional works and projects important to the development of the province, in which investment has been decided. To study, adjust and supplement branch development plannings and plans on investment in related works and projects.

Article 5.- This Decision takes effect 15 days after its publication in "CONG BAO."

Article 6.- The president of the People's Committee of Binh Duong province, ministers, heads of ministerial-level and government-attached agencies shall implement this Decision.