Where o’ where did the money go?

Dai An Industrial Zone (IZ) is located along National Highway 5, which links Hanoi and Hai Phong. 2007 saw hundreds of foreign investors survey the land and locals,13 decided to build factories there.

Truong Tu Phuong, Chairwoman and General Director of Dai An Joint Stock Company, the owner of Dai An IZ, said: “Nearly 60% of the total 170ha was occupied early this year and now 95%, far exceeding our target for 2007”.

Dai An IZ will be expanded by an additional 209ha. Though site clearance is still in the works, some foreign investors have already registered. Notably, a Taiwanese businessman plans to invest nearly $800 million into an electronic component plant.

This year’s FDI also found its way into the service sector, mainly real estate and construction projects worth several million US dollars each. The total registered capital in service projects is $8.5 billion.

Phan Huu Thang, Head of the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, said the two aforementioned trends reflect the actual direction of the Vietnamese economy.

“I hope that HCM City, Hanoi, Ha Tay and others will develop more modern urban areas like Phu My Hung through foreign investment,” Thang said.

He also said this year’s FDI will create jobs for nearly 130,000 workers, 20,000 more than last year. Thang said this is a significant support structure for the Vietnamese economy and is a reflection of foreign enterprises’ contribution.

Lots of money, few skilled workers

A Japanese investment advisor, Kyoshiro Ichikawa, said more and more FDI will continue flowing into Vietnam over the next few years if the country keeps its market maturity concurrent with the investment rate. It also means the country has to help investors spend their $20 billion and the remaining capital registered in previous years.

“This is Vietnam’s biggest future challenge,” the Japanese advisor asserted.

In some provinces, many foreign investors weren’t able to implement projects because of limited land.

An official from the Ministry of Planning and Investment said slow site clearance and construction of infrastructure facilities like power, roads, etc. in some localities have forced investors to seek alternative locations. Projects slated for HCM City’s Hi-tech Park, worth around $1 billion, are awaiting land.

Human resources is also a problem. Shigenobu Nagamori, Chairman of Japanese Nidec group, said when his company decided to invest in Vietnam, its biggest concern was, and is still, human resources.

“We plan to recruit around 30,000 workers for our domestic projects. It will be a significant problem if we can’t find enough workers,” he added.

Source: Tuoi Tre