The southern province of Binh Phuoc called for Singaporean investment in 63 prioritised projects during an investment promotion conference in the coastal country on Thursday.

These projects specialise in a wide range of sectors, including construction development of industrial zones, agriculture and food processing, energy and trade, as well as tourism and services.

Chairman of Binh Phuoc People’s Committee Nguyen Van Tram briefed the conference on the provincial advantages for investment attraction, such as favourable geographic location (a gateway connecting Tay Nguyen region, HCM City and Cambodia), and an abundant resource of clear land and raw materials for industrial and agricultural development.

The province has also been perfecting infrastructure facilities and speeding up administrative reforms to better facilitate investors, including those from Singapore, he said.

As of last year, the locality attracted 157 foreign-invested projects with total investment capital of US$1.4 billion. However, only three of the projects, worth $8.1 million, were financed by Singaporean investors.

Therefore, Binh Phuoc hoped to lure more investment from Singaporean businesses, especially in hi-tech farming, clean industries and animal feed production, the chairman said.

Benson Lim, managing director of R1 Company, which is investing in the rubber processing industry in Binh Phuoc, praised the efforts of local authorities in solving difficulties faced by foreign investors in a timely manner and said his company planned to expand its operation in the province in the future.

According to Singapore Business Federation (SBF)’s latest survey, ASEAN was the top region where Singaporean businesses wanted to expand their investment, while Viet Nam ranked third among the Southeast Asian countries for targeted investment.

Since the beginning of this year, SBF has co-ordinated with the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Vietnamese localities to organise business conferences in respective countries and business trips for two nations’ firms to help them ultilise trade and investment co-operation opportunities. — VNS