The Central Highlands province of Dak Nong will introduce its investment potential and opportunities to more than 800 delegates and businesses at a forthcoming investment  promotion conference here next month.

Despite its vast advantages in developing hi-tech farming, processing and mining industries, trade and service, ecological tourism and renewable energy, the province’s results in investment attraction remained modest, according the provincial Department of Planning and Investment director Luu Van Trung.

Trung told baodautu.vn that the province attracted only small-scale projects which have failed to make effective contributions to provincial socio-economic development and the improvement of local people’s lives.

The director described the upcoming event as a good chance for Dak Nong to provide foreign and domestic businesses with up-to-date information about provincial investment opportunities.

The event is slated to be held on January 14, 2019.

Statistics from the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) revealed that the province lured only one foreign-invested project, worth US$48 million, in 2018. The latest addition has brought its total number of foreign-invested projects up to 12, capitalised at $145 million.

Currently, the province ranks 53rd among 64 localities in terms of foreign direct investment attraction, FIA’s data showed.

The unsatisfactory performance was due to the provincial’s disadvantageous geographic location (far from the country’s major economic hubs), poor transport system, insufficient infrastructure facilities and low-skilled personnel resources, enternews.vn cited head of the provincial Investment Promotion Centre Le Van Mot as saying.

In order to further improve the efficiency of attracting investment and creating a transparent investment environment, Dak Nong has issued preferential policies to encourage businesses to invest in the province, he said. Besides, the province would continue to promote administrative procedure reform with a focus on slashing time for fulfilling procedures and implementing a “one-stop shop” mechanism to better facilitate businesses.

Perfecting infrastructure facilities, improving the quality of human resources, solving difficulties facing investors in a timely manner and assisting them in accessing financial packages to develop their projects would also be included, he added. — VNS