The park, which opened in early December in Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park, Nha Be District, is the first of its kind in Viet Nam. It provides pre-fabricated workshops of various sizes. — File Photo

HCM CITY (Biz Hub) — The HCM City industrial authority is pinning its hopes on the new Vie-Pan Techno Park (VPTP) as the southern economic hub goes to great lengths to accelerate its sluggish support industry.

The park, which opened in early December in Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park, Nha Be District, is the first of its kind in Viet Nam. It provides pre-fabricated workshops of various sizes.

According to Vu Van Hoa, head of the HCM City Export Processing and Industrial Zones Authority, Japanese small and medium-sized support enterprises only needed 300-1000sq.m of working space, which the VPTP provides.

Hoa said the park would help enterprises form a network where they could exchange technology and business, thus boosting the industry's development.

Tat Thanh Cang, Vice Chairman of the HCM City People's Committee, said that this kind of park would help local companies establish closer links with foreign companies in terms of technology transfer. Eight enterprises so far had confirmed that they would invest in the park and two were already licensed, Hoa said.

Sanko MDF, specialising in water and oil pipes, will be the first company to go into production by the end of December.

Up to 50 percent of Vietnamese companies in the city's industrial zones are engaged in the support industry but their products have low added value and most are not part of any global supply chain.

Vice Chairman Cang said the city would revise mechanisms and policies relating to finance, land and trade and investment promotion to assist small and medium-sized enterprises operating in the industry.

The city's long-term goal was to multiply the VPTP model and establish a strong support industry, contributing to industrialisation and modernisation, Cang said.