Vietnam Today

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has signed Decision No. 788/QD-TTg dated June 29, 2022 establishing the Appraisal Council of National Marine Spatial Planning for the 2021-2030 period and vision to 2045. The Chairman is Deputy Prime Minister Le Van Thanh. Its task is to advise and assist the government and the Prime Minister on performing assigned tasks in accordance with the Law on Planning related to the appraisal of the national marine spatial plan.

State Audit of Vietnam carried out many audits last year, including those on planning management and construction licensing in urban areas in the 2017-2020 period. According to the results, announced on July 1, there remain many shortcomings in land and construction management in localities, such as loose planning, inefficient management and use of land, and inappropriate conversion of land use purposes.

On July 1, at a conference summarizing 20 years of implementing a Politburo Resolution on socio-economic development in the central highlands, Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung raised five key issues in need of attention for the region to boost development, such as restoring and developing the forest economy, protecting watershed ecosystems, biodiversity, and water security, and addressing immigration issues.

According to data from the Hai Phong City People’s Committee released on June 30, gross regional domestic product (GRDP) was estimated to have increased 11.1 per cent over the same period last year, less than the targeted 13 per cent, ranking it seventh in the country and third in the Red River Delta. The highlight of the city’s economic growth was its service sector, which increased 9.05 per cent.

Northern Thanh Hoa province welcomed over 6.8 million visitors in the first half of 2022, including 44,550 international visitors, up 131.6 per cent over the same period of 2021. Revenue was more than VND11.5 trillion ($493 million); a 2.6-fold increase year-on-year and representing 64.5 per cent of the annual plan. The province is aiming to welcome over 10 million visitors in the year as a whole, with more than 440,000 to be foreigners, and for tourism revenue to total VND18 trillion ($773 million).

Within the framework of his official visit to the UK, on June 29, in London, National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue received leaders of a number of British corporations investing in Vietnam, who made many key commitments. Prudential committed to cooperating with Vietnam in three initiatives: green investment, insurance technology, and the development orientation of Ho Chi Minh City in becoming an international financial center. Standard Chartered, meanwhile, committed to helping Vietnam improve its credit rating.