A corner of Ha Tien City. — Photo Tienphong.vn

A ceremony was held in Ha Tien City in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang on Friday to announce the establishment of the Ha Tien Border-Gate Economic Zone, the province’s only economic zone.

Established under a decision by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on August 5, 2020, the 1,600-ha economic zone spans five communes - Phao Dai, Dong Ho, To Chau, Binh San, and My Duc.

It consists of seven areas, including duty-free, tourism, administrative, residential areas, an industrial park, and the Ha Tien International Border Gate, which leads to the Prek Chak International Border Gate on the Cambodian side, and service areas.

Speaking at the event, Chairman of the Ha Tien City’s People’s Committee Le Quoc Anh said he expects the new economic zone will increase the city’s attractiveness among both domestic and foreign investors and fuel the development of industry, services, tourism, and infrastructure in surrounding areas.

It should pave the way for the expansion of the population along the shared border with Cambodia, in order to foster economic, cultural, and defence-security exchanges between the two countries and boost Ha Tien City’s economic growth, he said.

Investors will be given exemptions from import duties and reductions on a number of taxes and fees, for example land lease and land use fees and corporate taxes, when setting up base at the Ha Tien Border-Gate Economic Zone.

The economic zone has so far attracted 35 projects worth close to VND4.4 trillion (US$191.5 million) in total. — VNS