HCM City Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Thien Nhan has urged the city to focus on the role of the private sector and continue to improve competitiveness and administrative reform.

Nhan was speaking at a meeting of the 10th HCM City Party Committee on Tuesday.

The two-day meeting discussed the city’s development in the first half of the year as well as key solutions for tasks in the second half.

The meeting also discussed the medium-term public investment plan for the 2016-20 period, as well as results of the five-year implementation of an action programme by the Party Central Committee for infrastructure development.

It also reviewed the results of administrative reform and the implementation of the Party’s resolutions on Party building in HCM City.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Tat Thanh Cang, deputy secretary of the municipal Party Committee, said HCM City had achieved significant results in all fields in the first half of the year.

The city’s economy continued to grow at a higher rate compared with the same period last year, with the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) increasing by 7.8 per cent while State budget revenue reached more than 49 per cent, up 17.5 per cent over the same period.

The city’s plan to develop 500,000 enterprises by 2020 also saw positive results, with a favourable business environment created for over 18,679 newly established enterprises, a rise of 10.9 per cent over the same period.

More than 550 home-based businesses are being transformed into enterprises.

In addition, a number of infrastructure projects have begun or have been completed and put into use, helping to ease traffic congestion and flooding.

However, challenges remain. The city’s economy has not fully improved, with slow development of the support industry and some projects due to a lack of investment and land clearance problems.

Other challenges include traffic congestion, floods and pollution.

Nguyen Thien Nhan, HCM City Party Committee Secretary, proposed a number of measures to seek investment.

Nhan recommended that the city focus on the private sector, saying the private sector accounts for 59 per cent of the city’s economic structure, while State and foreign investment only account for 20 per cent and 15 per cent, respectively.

Meanwhile, the non-State sector accounts for nearly 80 per cent of the investments, with the private sector contributing 63 per cent, along with 15 per cent from foreign investment.

Regarding the challenges addressed by PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc at a recent meeting with city leaders, Nhan said the proportion of foreign investment in the last five years was still lower than the national average, and that serious measures were needed in administrative reform and the fight against corruption.

According to a report from the People’s Committee, HCM City’s economy continued to grow more than before.

The Gross Regional Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate has reached 7.76 per cent, higher than the 7.47 per cent rate during the same period last year.

Services increased 7.4 per cent, accounting for 58.2 per cent of the total, and industry and construction was up 7.2 per cent making up 23.3 per cent of the total.

The agro-aqua-forestry sector grew 5.9 per cent making up 0.7 per cent of the total.

Total retail sales of goods and services were estimated to reach VND450 trillion ($19.79 billion), up 10.2 per cent.

The city attracted 2.8 million visitors, a year-on-year increase of 14.7 per cent, bringing VND53.6 trillion ($2.36 billion), up 12 per cent.

Exports brought $14.23 billion, excluding crude oil value, raising 20.3 per cent over the same period last year.

The industrial production index rose 7.5 per cent over the same period last year. — VNS