HCM City expects to achieve an annual per capita income of $4,800 by 2015. — Photo saigonnews.vn

HCM CITY (VNS) — HCM City needs to address shortcomings like low and unstable growth in some sectors and tardy progress in restructuring its economy, the head of its legislature has said.

In her speech at the opening session of the People's Council on Monday, Nguyen Thi Tam, its chairperson, said a number of cultural, educational, and social issues and some urgent public matters remain unresolved.

She said these issues remain though the city has achieved "rational" economic growth rates and restructure of its economy is on the right track.

In a report, the People's Committee said the city has achieved stable and rational economic growth and "positive" cultural and social achievements in the past three years.

Despite the global economic turmoil, the city is set to reach per capita income of US$4,513 this year, according to a report tabled at a meeting of the city Party Committee last week.

The city economy grew at an average annual rate of 9.6 per cent in 2011 - 13.

Its services sector achieved a 7.5 per cent growth rate, and the agricultural, forestry, and aquaculture sector, a 5.7 per cent rate.

Services continued to make a big contribution to the city's economy with the development of nine sectors including finance -banking - insurance; tourism, post and telecom; transport and logistics; science and technology; and education and health services.

One of the most important targets was achieving an annual per capita income of $4,800 by 2015, the report said.

But the People's Committee admitted to unstable economic growth, low competitiveness, the small number of industries and services with high value addition, and low economic productivity.

In addition to the poor and overloaded infrastructure, flooding and environmental pollution adversely affect efforts to improve people's living standards.

Pham Van Dong, head of the council's Economy and Budgets Division, said in 2013 the city's economic growth failed to fulfil its potential.

The committee's report said gross capital formation this year was VND225 trillion, a year-on-year increase of 4 per cent as compared to 7 per cent last year.

Dong said the city suffers huge losses of clean water equivalent to 34.32 per cent of its total supply.

"The percentage of residents using clean water is one of the measures for quality of life," he said.  — VNS