The Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh targets 4,000 enterprises by 2020, with more than 30 per cent and 15 percent of them owned by woman and ethnic minorities, respectively.

This was announced at a conference in the locality on Wednesday, held by the provincial Department of Planning and Investment and Tra Vinh SME Development Project’s management authority. The event discussed plans to support the development of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

According to Pham Van Be Sau, deputy director of the provincial Department of Planning and Investment and Tra Vinh SME Development project, local SMEs are set to create 22,000-25,000 jobs per year from now until 2020, bringing a monthly income of VND4.5-4.7 million for each labourer.

These SMEs are expected to contribute 50 per cent and between 45-50 per cent to the province’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP) and the local budget, respectively.

Tra Vinh is currently home to 2,153 enterprises, 98 per cent of which are SMEs, firms that usually struggle to access support policies, preferential loans, technologies and consumption markets.

To promote SMEs’ development, local authorities will continue to perfect policies to create a healthy business environment.

Attention has been paid to providing financial assistance to enterprises and building and upgrading infrastructure systems.

Start-up activities have been fostered in the locality to encourage household businesses to transform into enterprises.

Sau said Tra Vinh planned to spend VND2.66 trillion (US$116.7 million) to support local businesses during 2018-20.

From 2012-20, SMEs operating in the province are allowed financial assistance worth CAD12.1 million ($9.4 million) for their production and business activities, including CAD11 million worth of non-refundable assistance funded by the Canadian Government. — VNS