Located on the left bank of the Red River, in the center of the northern delta and the northern key economic region, Hung Yen province borders Hai Duong province to the east, Hanoi and Ha Nam to the west, Thai Binh province to the south and Bac Ninh province to the north. Surrounded by the Red River and Luoc river that fertilize corn and rice fields, longan orchards and lotus ponds, Hung Yen province is the only locality in the country having no mountains, forests or beaches. Covering 923 square kilometers, Hung Yen has a population of some 1.3 million. It has a provincial city with the same name, My Hao town and eight districts, namely Van Lam, Yen My, Van Giang, Khoai Chau, An Thi, Kim Dong, Tien Lu and Phu Cu.
There are major national highways, namely 5A, 39A, 38 and 38B, and the Hanoi-Hai Phong expressway running through the province. The province is also connected with other northern provinces by the Hanoi-Hai Phong railway.
Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Van Phong has proposed the Government support Hanoi and Hung Yen province to implement some transport projects, including the connection section of Hanoi-Hai Phong and Cau Gie-Ninh Binh expressways.
Efforts to attract foreign direct investment
In addition to ten industrial parks (IPs) at present, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has given a green light to Hung Yen to include the 3,000 ha Ly Thuong Kiet service and urban IP into its IP planning from now to 2025 and 2030.
According to expert Tran Dinh Tuan from the Division of Investment Management of the Management Board of Industrial Parks (IPs) of Hung Yen (MBIPHY), the province granted investment licenses to 17 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects totaling USD 200 million and permitted 20 existing FDI projects to add USD 84.8 million to their capital in the first half of 2019. These projects invest in real estate, manufacturing rubber and plastic products, automobiles, computers, electronic and electric products, animal and aquatic feeds, chemical products, and textile industry. FDI projects created new jobs for 1,300 local workers in the first half of 2019, bringing the total number of local employees working in the province’s IPs to 52,500.
In the reviewed period, it also terminated the operation of two FDI projects worth USD 5.53 million.
The province has so far had 231 operational FDI projects with a combined registered capital of over USD 3.9 billion located mainly in six IPs, including Pho Noi A, Thang Long II, Pho Noi Textile and Garment, Minh Duc, Yen My II and Yen My.
To date, 16 countries and territories have been investing in the province. Japan is the largest investor with 130 projects capitalized at around USD 2.8 billion, followed by the Republic of Korea with 42 projects and USD 434 million and Hongkong (China) with 16 projects and USD 187 million. The other investors are from Singapore, China, Switzerland, Thailand, Italy, Taiwan, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the US, the Netherlands, Germany, the UK and Canada.
With the motto “Success of businesses and investors is the province’s success”, in the second half of the year, the MBIPHY said it would work with related agencies in supporting investors in Minh Duc, Pho Noi A, Kim Dong, Yen My, Yen My II and Minh Quang IPs in completing the ground clearance. At present, Hung Yen province is calling for investment in hi-tech, energy-saving and environment-friendly projects. The provincial IP management board will continue simplifying the administrative formalities for investment and construction and maintain the operation of the Hung Yen-Japan Desk that was set up in the Thang Long II IP in November 2016 to facilitate the process of investment licensing and improve the efficiency of investors’ production and business activities in the province.
Regarding investment incentives, domestic and foreign investors may be exempted from land rental for three years from the effective date of their land lease contracts and up to 11 years for agricultural production projects. In addition, they will enjoy a corporate income tax rate of 20 percent. Investors will also be considered for duty exemption for goods imported to create their fixed assets or raw materials or accessories imported for their projects.
The provincial authorities have committed to shortening the time for completion of the formalities for establishment of enterprises to one day, for grant of work permits to foreign workers to five days, for border-gate customs clearance to under 12 days for imported goods and to under 10 days for exported goods. Every year, they will hold dialogues with entrepreneurs and investors in the locality to collect their opinions and recommendations and help them solve problems.
Hospitality sector with spiritual tours
First founded in 1831 and re-established in 1997, Hung Yen province is renowned for the old saying “Thu nhat Kinh Ky, thu nhi Pho Hien” (the most important is the capital city, the second is Hien (Hung Yen) town). It was home to famous patriots such as Pham Ngu Lao, Nguyen Thien Thuat and Hoang Hoa Tham. The province is famous for various traditional festivals, including the Hai Thuong Lan Ong festival that dedicated to the country’s legendary medicine man Le Huu Trac and the myth of Chu Dong Tu-Tien Dung (a legend of love between a poor man and the daughter of the 18th Hung King).
It boasts 1,802 relics, including two special national relics and 165 national relics, ranking third in the country in terms of national relics. These relics include Xich Dang Literature Temple, Bell Pagoda and Hien Pagoda.
Hung Yen is also rich in craft villages. Among the best known are the Long Thuong bronze casting village in Dai Dong commune, Van Lam district; the Hue Lai silverware making village in An Thi district and the Lien Khe bamboo and rattan weaving village in Khoai Chau district.
Visitors to the province will have a chance to taste local specialities, including longan, lotus seeds and Dong Tao chicken, a rare Vietnamese species of chicken with bulky legs, red skin and delicious meat that used to be served only to kings, and enjoy ceremonial singing “ca tru” and traditional popular opera “cheo” performed by local people.
According to Vu Thi Mai Phuong, head of the tourism management section of the Hung Yen Culture, Sports and Tourism Department, the province received 14,500 foreign tourists and earned some VND 170 billion (USD 7.3 million) in the first half of the year. The province expects to receive around 20,500 foreign holiday makers and earn a gross profit of over VND 220 billion (USD 9.5 million) this year.
At present, the province has two three-star hotels, 11 two-star hotels, 18 one-star hotels and 225 guest houses. In addition to tours to traditional craft villages, cultural and spiritual tours and community-based ecological tours, the province has recently cooperated with Hanoi in developing road and waterway tours and signed tourism cooperation programs with other northern provinces.
Director of the Hung Yen Tourism Promotion Information Center Nguyen Thi Sen told the local newspaper that Hung Yen has taken part in a number of tourism fairs and trade-tourism fairs at home and abroad as well as traditional festivals across the country to introduce its tourist products and services.
Since 2018, the center has published some 300 articles introducing Hung Yen’s tourism potential and cooperated with the Vietnam Television and the local TV to broadcast the films featuring the tourist exploration of Khoai Chau district and Pho Hien town as the ancient charm inside the Hung Yen city, Sen added.
Last year, the province welcomed 20,000 foreign holiday makers, a year-on-year rise of 16 percent, and earned a turnover of around VND 200 billion (USD 8.6 million).
