According to the Bac Ninh Provincial Planning and Investment Department, the province’s economy has shown positive signs of growth in the first nine months of the year. The estimated Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) for the same period increased by 3.55% compared to the same period in 2023, while the industrial production index (IIP) grew by a positive 8.1%.
Trade and service activities have been thriving, with a retail sales increase of 8.9% and state budget revenue up by 21.5%. The province has also been proactive in external affairs and cooperation with other localities and units, enhancing its position and attracting foreign investment (FDI) in the first months of 2024, ranking first in the country.
The Ha Bac 2 Bridge, a nearly VND 400 billion project connecting Bac Giang and Bac Ninh provinces, was completed nearly a year ago but remains unopened.
The province’s education sector has maintained its leading position in the country, with outstanding results in the national high school gifted student exam for the 2023-2024 academic year. Bac Ninh ranked first in the country in terms of the ratio of students winning first prizes and second in the ratio of students winning prizes. Notably, in the regional and international Olympiads in 2024, three students from Bac Ninh participated, winning one gold medal in international chemistry, one bronze medal in international mathematics, and one bronze medal in European physics.
Along with these achievements, Bac Ninh continues to focus on its development goals, accelerating the construction of a modern and synchronous socio-economic infrastructure. Administrative reforms, an improved business environment, and the removal of obstacles are boosting the recovery of industrial production, modern trade, and convenient services, driving economic growth. The province also effectively manages and utilizes land resources and protects the environment while comprehensively developing culture, education, and healthcare, ensuring social welfare and improving people’s lives.
As of September 14, the province’s public investment disbursement reached VND 2,435 billion (including extended capital), equivalent to 37.5% of the allocation by the three levels of Bac Ninh Provincial People’s Committee, county, and communal People’s Committees; 26.6% of the capital assigned by the Government; 24.9% of the capital assigned by the Provincial People’s Council; and 27.9% of the capital allocated and assigned in detail by the Provincial People’s Committee to the district-level People’s Committees. Although the province’s disbursement rate has increased, it is still very low compared to the national average of 40.49%.
According to forecasts, by the end of 2024, Bac Ninh is expected to exceed the plan in 2/17 indicators, meet the plan in 8/17 indicators, and need more determination to strive to achieve the plan in 5/17 indicators; 2/17 indicators will be calculated at the end of the year.
During the inspection, Mr. Vuong Quoc Tuan, Chairman of the Bac Ninh Provincial People’s Committee, criticized some contractors for their lack of proactiveness and determination in accelerating the construction progress.
Mr. Vuong Quoc Tuan, Chairman of the Bac Ninh Provincial People’s Committee, assessed that the recent typhoon caused difficulties in achieving the province’s growth targets, especially in agricultural production. He emphasized the crucial role of the fourth quarter in the final push to achieve the 17 planned targets for the year.
“The departments, sectors, and localities are requested to coordinate with the Statistics Office to thoroughly review and achieve the best results for the indicators within their capacity. At the same time, they should continue to implement synchronous solutions to comprehensively develop the socio-economic fields. It is necessary to direct the review and overcome existing shortcomings and limitations, assign organizations and individuals to be in charge, and have a roadmap, solutions, and specific time to strive to complete the plan for 2024,” emphasized the Chairman of Bac Ninh Provincial People’s Committee.
Regarding public investment disbursement, the Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee attributed the low disbursement rate to subjective and objective factors, including the lack of proactive coordination among departments, sectors, and localities in resolving problems in project implementation and the limited capacity of some contractors.
The Net Bridge project, with a total investment of nearly VND 120 billion, started in September 2020 and was expected to be completed by December 2021. However, it remains unopened.
The Chairman requested Thuan Thanh town, Luong Tai, Gia Binh, and Tien Du districts, along with investors with a disbursement rate lower than the national average, to focus on reviewing and accelerating the disbursement of allocated capital. He affirmed that the provincial leaders are ready to work with and remove obstacles for departments, sectors, and localities regarding public investment disbursement.
Mr. Vuong Quoc Tuan, Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, agreed with the report on the results of the plan to improve the evaluation indexes of the province’s governance capacity by the Institute of Economic and Social Development Research. The report comprehensively assessed the improvement and promotion of the following indexes: Satisfaction of the people with the service of administrative agencies (SIPAS); Administrative Reform (PAR INDEX); Digital Transformation (DTI) and Readiness for Development and Application of Information and Communication Technology in Vietnam (ICT Index); Provincial Competitiveness (PCI); and Green Provincial Competitiveness (PGI).
“The monthly evaluation of results is practical and necessary. It is an honest measure and an objective assessment of the effectiveness and responsibility of departments, sectors, and localities in administrative reform, improving the business environment, and local governance quality indexes. Departments, sectors, and localities shall synthesize and send reports on results to the Institute of Economic and Social Development Research by the 25th of every month for timely adjustments,” informed the Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee.
Regarding the SIPAS index, the Chairman requested that the departments, sectors, and localities direct the units receiving and processing administrative procedures at the public administration centers of all levels to comply with ISO standards. In cases where the dossier needs to be supplemented or rejected, the directly handling official must attach a document clearly stating the reason for the request for supplementation or rejection. The Institute of Economic and Social Development Research will develop a common template to ensure consistency and uniformity for all departments, sectors, and localities.
Overall view of the stalled project in Que Vo town, Bac Ninh province
Many places are utilized for fish farming and duck raising
For the PAR INDEX index, the departments and sectors are requested to urgently complete the arrangement and handling of land by November 30, 2024; digitize archived documents according to regulations; and complete the procedure for announcing the list of administrative procedures and the internal process for handling administrative procedures in October 2024. The Chairpersons of the People’s Committees of the districts, towns, and city shall strengthen inspection, have forms of reminders, and consider labor emulation for units with a high number of overdue dossiers. It is also necessary to enhance information provision on the electronic information portals of the units to improve the transparency index.
The Institute of Economic and Social Development Research should closely monitor and implement solutions to restore the province’s reputation as one of the top 10 localities in the country in terms of the PCI and PGI indexes.
At the program, the participants also considered and provided opinions on the following contents: Adjustment of the medium-term public investment plan for the 2021-2025 period (6th time); Medium-term public investment plan for the 2026-2030 period; Plan for meetings and dialogues with businesses and cooperatives in the province; Regulations on the process and mechanism for resolving difficulties in implementing investment and business laws related to enterprises, cooperatives, and business households in the province; the situation of implementing the regulations on industrial cluster management; and the results of the 5-year implementation of the plan on prevention and response to chemical incidents…
