Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended the Gia Lai Investment Promotion Conference 2022 in Pleiku City on Saturday, which drew representatives from ministries, sectors, international organisations, businesses, and localities in the Central Highlands region.

Addressing the event, PM Chinh underlined the need for Gia Lai Province to continue to keep the COVID-19 pandemic under good control, while quickly completing its planning to identify its own potential and competitive advantages, and speeding up the development of its strategic infrastructure system.

Gia Lai should continue to work hard with administrative reform, improve the quality of human resources, promote science-technology, innovation, diversify the supply chain and strengthen digital transformation and energy transition, he said.

The Government leader expressed his hope that investors will make effective investment and do long-term business in the province, ensuring harmony of interests among businesses, people and the State.

He also asked ministries and sectors to coordinate with and create favourable conditions for Gia Lai to overcome difficulties, optimise its resources and promote its potential and strengths for further development in a spirit of sincerity, trust and responsibility.

At the conference, Gia Lai called for investment in 112 projects in the 2022-25 period, focusing on infrastructure construction, agro-forestry product processing, construction material, trade and tourism.

In 2016-20, the locality drew 515 projects worth VND83 trillion (US$3.58 billion), five times higher than the projected number and a massive 36 times increase in capital from the previous five-year period.

In 2021, the province approved investment policy for 60 projects worth more than VND29 trillion ($1.25 billion). Investors are also proposing 172 other projects with a total investment of around VND67 trillion. So far, many large Vietnamese and foreign groups have made their presence in Gia Lai with many large-scale projects.

According to Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Vo Ngoc Thanh, as the gateway of the region, Gia Lai has become a centre for trade and services in the Cambodia-Laos-Viet Nam development triangle and an important connection point between the Central Highlands region and localities in the central and southeastern regions.

Gia Lai has a large farming area of 845,000 hectares, which is suitable for developing fruit trees with high economic value. It also boasts favourable conditions for industry, trade, especially processing and renewable energy.

Currently, the province has made planning for 21 industrial clusters, he said, adding that Gia Lai is in need of investment in high-tech agriculture, processing industry, renewable energy and tourism.

At the conference, PM Chinh witnessed the granting of investment policy decisions for 17 projects with a total investment of VND15 trillion and the signing of 29 memorandums of understanding with a total registered capital of more than VND115 trillion. — VNS