Billions in FDI waiting to flow into Mekong Delta

Tens of billions of U.S. dollars will pour into clean energy projects in the Mekong Delta if policies to attract foreign direct investment in this field are open and favorable, said a Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) official.

Speaking at a conference in Can Tho city on Friday, Nguyen Phuong Lam, director of the VCCI’s Can Tho branch, said the Mekong Delta has so far attracted over 1,900 FDI projects with total registered investment capital of $35 billion, mainly in the energy sector.

“FDI in the region remains low compared to other parts of the country. However, investment flow is expected to accelerate in the next few years,” he told the event.

According to Lam, the biggest concern now is the implementation of investment projects in general and FDI projects that are facing many obstacles due to overlapping legal regulations.

He cited the Land Law and the Law on Real Estate Business require investors to have an investment plan approved before changing the land use purpose, while the Law on Investment stipulates that investors must be allocated land before they can receive investment plan approval.

In addition, determining land prices is also a problem in terms of site clearance and calculating compensation, he added.

However, Lam held that the Mekong Delta region has experienced faster development since the Covid-19 pandemic, contributing greatly to the country's trade surplus thanks to its strong agricultural expansion.

The region also has great opportunities to attract investment as the government has invested $6.4 billion in developing its infrastructure, he added.

Under the newly approved Power Development Plan VIII, the Mekong Delta will become a clean energy hub. If all obstacles related to investment attraction regulations are removed, it will also be an attractive destination for investors, he said.

Echoing Lam, Vu Tien Loc, a member of the National Assembly and chairman of the Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (VIAC), said that the Mekong Delta is a key economic region in the South and an important strategic area for the country in terms of politics, socio-economy, culture, defense-security, and foreign affairs.

It has been showing steady and sustainable development, significantly contributing to the overall growth of the national economy. In 2021 and 2022, despite facing many challenges, trade activities in the region remained stable, indicating great efforts by the local authorities and business community to improve the business environment.

He said that as climate change and extreme weather are threatening global food security, many countries hope that Vietnam's Mekong Delta will serve as a food security "belt" for them. “This will be an opportunity for the region to promote investment in agriculture in the near future," Loc affirmed.

Home to about 22 million people, the Mekong Delta comprises Can Tho and the provinces of Long An, Dong Thap, Tien Giang, Vinh Long, Tra Vinh, Ben Tre, An Giang, Hau Giang, Soc Trang, Bac Lieu, Ca Mau, and Kien Giang.

Can Tho is one of the country’s five centrally-run cities, together with Hanoi and Hai Phong in the north, Danang in the central region, and Ho Chi Minh City in the south.