The software village, called F-ville, is being developed by the FPT Software Joint Stock Company at the Hoa Lac hi-tech zone. The management board of the zone said that they have awarded investment certificates for 70 projects with a total registered investment of VND54 trillion. VNS Photo

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — The management board of the Hoa Lac hi-tech zone in Ha Noi City awarded an investment certificate for three new projects in 2013.

This brings the total number of projects in the zone to 70, with a total registered investment of VND54 trillion (US$2.57 billion).

Board head Pham Dai Duong, who made the announcement, also noted that land clearance problems, the most difficult issue in the past 10 years, had been solved in the last months of 2013 with great support from the government. Therefore, they intend to concentrate on building infrastructure and improving the investment environment in 2014, he added.

Duong said the board will also present 65 hectares to the University of Science and Technology of Ha Noi and will continue to support training activities for information technology engineers.

On January 3, the board awarded investment certificates for Bac A Bank and Viettel Corporation projects worth VND2 trillion (more than $95 million). It had also received investment proposals for projects such as constructing the Viet Nam–Korean Institute of Science and Technology and the Viet Nam-Japan University.

At an event to review the zone's activities in 2013, Minister of Science and Technology Nguyen Quan heaped praise on the efforts and achievements of the management board during the year.

"The results have given us faith and hope for building the hi-tech zone, meeting the expectations of the government," he stated.

The minister remarked that 2013 was an important year for science and technology as the National Assembly had recently passed laws to regulate it. He expected that the zone would acquire more achievements this year thanks to the policies and measures implemented by the government.

"The zone should be developed into a science city, with high-tech projects and high-value investments," he added. — VNS