DECISION

APPROVING THE MASTER PLAN ON SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THAI BINH PROVINCE UP TO 2020

THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the December 25, 2001 Law on Organization of the Government;
At the proposals of the Planning and Investment Ministry in Report No. 5613/BKH-TD&GSDT of July 31, 2006, and of the People's Committee of Thai Binh province in Report No. 15/TTr-UBND of April 10, 2006, on the master plan on socio-economic development of Thai Binh province up to 2020,

DECIDES:

Article 1.- To approve the master plan on socio-economic development of Thai Binh province up to 2020, with the following principal contents:

I. DEVELOPMENT VIEWPOINTS

To continue bringing into the fullest play internal resources, associate the expansion of the province's commodity production with the domestic market and concurrently with the expansion of international market, boost export, bring into play and efficiently tap all potentials and resources for the objective of fast and sustainable economic growth, thus turning Thai Binh into a province attaining the average development level of the Red River delta.

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To quickly develop industry and services, attach importance to the development of hi-tech agriculture and place Thai Binh province in its overall relationships with the provinces in the Red River delta and the northern key economic region.

To build Thai Binh city with functions of a political, economic, cultural, scientific and technical center of the province and into a grade-II city in the 2010-2015 period. At the same time, to renovate, upgrade and develop urban centers and townships into developed economic centers which will function as development nuclei having radial effects on rural areas in the province.

To bring into play the human factor, raise the quality of human resources, adopt policies to attract and efficiently use high-quality human resources, including those from other localities and abroad; to adopt a mechanism to promote the development of education and training, especially training of civil servants, technical workers, technological and managerial experts and entrepreneurs.

To associate economic growth with the assurance of social justice, creation of jobs, poverty alleviation and improvement of the people's material and spiritual life. To pay attention to and make adequate investment in technical infrastructures and public works in rural areas, and strive to reduce to the utmost the number of poor households.

To closely combine socio-economic development with rational exploitation and protection of natural resources and ecological environment.

To associate economic development with firm maintenance of political stability, social order and safety, and assurance of strong defense and security throughout the development periods.

II. DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVES

1. General objectives

To strive for Thai Binh province's fast economic development, proper economic restructuring, gradually modernized socio-economic infrastructure network, fairly developed urban system and advanced social and cultural services, so that it attains the average development level of the Red River delta and the whole country.

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a/ Regarding economic development:

- To strive for the average annual GDP growth rate of 12.5% in the 2006-2010 period, 11.5% in the 2011-2015 period and around 11% in the 2016-2020 period.

- To vigorously restructure the economy so that by 2010 the agriculture-forestry-fishery ratio will be around 30%; the industry-construction ratio, around 37%; and the service ratio, 33%. By 2015, the ratios of those sectors will be 21%, 45% and 34% respectively. By 2020, the agriculture ratio will drop to 14%, while that of industry and service will increase to 51% and 35% respectively.

- To increase the export value from USD 98 million in 2005 to USD 200-240 million in 2010, some USD 400 million in 2015 and USD 800-850 million in 2020.

- To increase budget revenues in order to cover the province's expenditures and step by step have accumulation. To strive for the target that the budget revenue will make up around 15% of GDP by 2010, 17% by 2015 and 19% by 2020.

- To quickly increase the total social investment and strongly attract external capital sources. The total social investment capital is expected to reach 35-36% of GDP in the 2006-2010 period and around 40-41% of GDP in the 2011-2020 period.

- The per-capita GDP will reach VND 14.3 million by 2010, VND 28 million by 2015 and VND 51.2 million by 2020.

b/ Regarding social development:

- The general population growth rate will be 0.55% in the 2006-2015 period and around 0.65% in the 2016-2020 period. To raise the quality of the workforce, create jobs and reduce the urban unemployment rate to 2.5% and raise the rate of rural labor employment time to around 88-89% by 2020. To strive to reduce the rate of poor households to under 10% by 2010 and under 3% by 2020.

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- The rate of trained laborers will reach 40% by 2010, of which 25% will be provided with job training. These rates will be 60% and 42% by 2020. To raise the quality of education and complete the universalization of upper secondary education by 2010.

- To raise the quality of medical examination and treatment, public healthcare and cultural, physical training, sport, radio and television broadcasting activities throughout the province.

c/ Regarding natural resources and environment:

To adopt policies on management and rational use of natural resources, especially land, water sources, minerals, submerged forests; to prevent and effectively handle acts of causing environmental pollution, pay attention to and invest in the collection, recycling and treatment of wastes. By 2010, around 85% of the population will be supplied with clean water; to collect and treat 100% of daily-life waste; to manage and treat 100% of industrial and medical wastes.

To intensify the education and training in order to improve the awareness of environmental management and protection.

III. SELECTION OF KEY DOMAINS FOR BREAKTHROUGH DEVELOPMENT UP TO 2020

1. Criteria for key domains to be selected:

- Having prerequisites and advantages for development;

- Playing a great role in the economy in the process of industrialization and modernization: greatly contributing to the GDP, the state budget and social wealth accumulation, and being labor-intensive.

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- Bringing about socio-economic-environmental efficiency, and contributing to sustainable development.

2. Projected key domains:

a/ Intensifying the investment promotion and attraction; building a favorable investment environment and creating conditions for all economic sectors to take part in industrial development; strongly attracting domestic and foreign resources for fast development and fill-up of such industrial parks as the industrial park of Thai Binh city, Tien Hai and Cau Nghin industrial parks, and industrial clusters in districts; expanding craft villages.

b/ Developing high-quality human resources and building scientific and technological potentials. Quickly and vigorously developing tourism, especially eco-tourism; domestic trade; export; financial, banking, transport, post and telecommunications services. Actively accelerating the labor export program.

c/ Strongly restructuring agriculture towards a commodity agriculture of high quality with productivity and efficiency, and forming concentrated areas for production of raw materials and commodities.

Tapping to the utmost land potentials and allocating agricultural land areas for use with high efficiency. Partly converting low-yield rice fields into land areas for cultivation of industrial trees and specialty cash crops.

Planning hi-tech agricultural production areas and concentrated specialty rice areas.

d/ Building infrastructures and speeding up the urbanization, which are decisive domains and tasks to be performed throughout the planning period. Building Thai Binh city into a political, economic, cultural, scientific and technical center of the province and up to the grade-II city standards in the 2010-2015 period; building and expanding Diem Dien seaport and Tan De river port; upgrading a number of important roads and building bridges linking neighboring provinces, and building irrigation, water supply and power supply works; building infrastructures in tourist resorts and industrial parks.

IV. ORIENTATIONS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF BRANCHES AND DOMAINS

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The agricultural, forestry and fishery production value is expected to grow 4.8%/year in the 2006-2010 period, 4.5%/year in the 2011-2015 period, and 3.3%/year in the 2016-2020 period. In agricultural production structure, the cultivation ratio will be reduced while the husbandry and fishery ratios will gradually increase.

a/ Agriculture

To build a diversified, ecosystem-friendly and sustainably developed commodity agriculture and apply advanced technologies to production, preservation and processing of high-quality and high-value agricultural products. To pay special attention to the selection and production of new plant varieties of high yield and quality. To further restructure agriculture in the direction of raising the husbandry and fishery ratios and restructuring the rural economy in each area.

The agricultural production value will grow 4.1%/year in the 2006-2010 period, 3.7%/year in the 2011-2015 period and 2.6% in the 2016-2020 period.

The production value generated from one hectare of agricultural land will reach VND 45 million by 2010 and around VND 60 million by 2020.

To promote the development of winter crops so that by 2010 the land area under winter crops will reach 40-45% of the province's total cultivation land area and 50% or more by 2020.

b/ Fishery

Fishery production value will increase 11.5%/year in the 2006-2010 period, 9.4%/year in the 2011-2015 period and 6.7%/year in the 2016-2020 period.

To continue expanding the tidal swamp area, and boost intensive aquaculture in brackish water areas; to scale up and technologically renovate aquatic breeding establishments; to step up the revamp and conversion of ponds, lakes and fields into concentrated areas for development of intensive and semi-intensive aquaculture and turning out large volume of high-quality commodity products. As projected, the land area for saltwater and brackish water aquaculture will reach over 12,000 hectares by 2020.

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c/ Forestry

To continue planting new forests and protecting coastal protective forests. To develop models of coastal forest planting by mode of combined agriculture, forestry and fishery.

2. Development of industries, cottage industries and handicrafts

To prioritize the development of industries with stable outlets (both domestic and foreign) and high efficiency, and industries advantageous in raw material sources and labor-intensive.

To encourage enterprises to increase intensive investment in modern technologies and complete equipment.

To strive for an average growth rate of 27%/year in the 2006 ' 2010 period, 20%/year in the 2011-2015 period and 17%/year in the 2016 ' 2020 period.

To combine the concentrated industrial development in industrial parks and industrial complexes with the development of industries, cottage industries and handicrafts in traditional craft villages.

a/ Farm produce and food processing industry: To step by step introduce modern technologies into processing industry, associate the development of processing industry with the development of raw material areas; to replace preliminary processing with refinement. To build concentrated processing establishments in large raw material areas and at the same time promote the development of small- and medium-sized establishments in association with the development of cottage industries and craft villages.

b/ Textile and garment industry: To gradually relocate textile and garment enterprises to districts in the province, encourage local enterprises to take initiative in seeking markets for themselves, thus gradually reducing garment outsourcing for other enterprises and proceeding to conduct direct export.

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d/ Ceramic, porcelain, glass and construction material industry: To diversify forms of investment and products, and develop these products in terms of quantity, quality and type to suit the people's taste and purchasing power.

e/ Exploitation and use of mine gas and chemical industry: To carry out procedures and preparatory work for exploration and exploitation of natural gas for Tien Hai industrial park.

f/ Mechanical, electric, electronic and information technology industries: To develop mechanical, electric and electronic industries into important ones capable of generating a large added value in the province's industrial production. To step by step develop information technology, concentrating primarily on software industry.

g/ Development of industrial parks, industrial complexes and craft villages: To continue building and completing technical infrastructures of industrial parks, concentrated industrial complexes, industrial clusters of craft villages, and call for domestic and foreign investment projects. To plan the location in each district or city of 3-5 concentrated industrial complexes and 5- 10 industrial clusters of craft villages in the 2011-2015 period, and 6-7 concentrated industrial complexes and 10-15 industrial clusters of craft villages in the 2016- 2020 period.

3. Development of services

a/ Commerce:

To step up the development of commerce-services, thereby satisfying diverse needs of production, business and life, and actively contributing to economic development and market expansion.

To complete the provincial commercial system, attaching special importance to the development of rural markets and wholesale markets. The total retail value and service turnover will grow 12.7% on average in the 2006-2020 period. The province's total export value is projected to reach USD 430 million by 2010, USD 950 million by 2015 and USD 2,300 million by 2020, with an average growth rate of 18.6%/year in the 2006-2020 period.

b/ Tourism:

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c/ Financial, banking and insurance services

To intensify the mobilization of local capital by branches of state-run commercial banks and other credit institutions, increase the investment of capital in all economic sectors. To promote insurance activities and other financial services.

To develop various services for production and development of industrial parks. To raise the quality and diversify types of service.

4. Culture and social affairs

a/ Population, labor and employment:

To well implement the population and family planning program. Thai Binh province's population is expected to reach 1,902,400 by 2010, 1,955,000 by 2015 and 2,020,000 by 2020.

To build a regional job-training center to provide job training to people in the province and neighboring provinces.

The labor structure will be drastically changed in the direction of markedly reducing the number of agricultural labor and quickly increasing the industrial, construction and service labor. By 2020, agricultural labor will make up around only 33% of the total workforce.

To step up labor export activities.

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To continue building and developing Thai Binh province's education and training system into a balanced, synchronous and high-quality one so as to guarantee the people's right and duty to study and social justice in education.

To step by step modernize and standardize various educational forms in order to tap and bring into play the scientific and technological potentials and achievements.

To raise the comprehensive education quality and efficiency, and attach importance to the following three objectives: raising of people's intellectual level, training of human resources and fostering of talents in order to satisfy socio-economic development requirements of the province and the whole country.

To promote the socialization of education and training activities. To transform semi-public young sprout schools and upper secondary schools into non-public ones. To create conditions for a number of public schools to be transformed into non-public ones. To shift activities of most schools and a number of schools tasked for education universalization to public-service activities.

c/ Health and community's healthcare:

By 2020, the average height of the youth will be 2-3 cm higher than that in 2005.

By 2020, 100% of households will be supplied with clean water.

To control the rate of HIV/AIDS-affected persons to the total population at under 0.3% by 2010 and afterward.

By 2010, the mortality rate of women in childbirth will be under 0.04% of total alive newborns; to reduce the rate of malnourished under-five children to under 18% and the rate of newborns weighing less than 2,500g to under 3%, and maintain the replacement birthrate.

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To consolidate the material foundations and human resources for the healthcare network from the provincial level to commune and ward level.

To strive for the target that every 10,000 people will have 8 medical doctors, 0.5 pharmacist of university degree and 18 patient beds by 2010.

d/ Culture, information, physical training and sports:

- To enhance the state management of culture and information.

To strive for the target that 80% of households, 55% of villages and hamlets, 80% of agencies and schools attain the cultural standards by 2010, which will rise to 90%, 65% and 90% respectively by 2020.

To increase the time volume and raise the quality of radio and television broadcasts.

To invest in material foundations, equipment and facilities of the province's museums, library, exhibition and information house, central cultural house, etc., in order to raise the quality of their operation.

- To campaign for and organize a mass physical training and sport movement; to promote the development of non-public facilities for physical exercise and sport training and competition, and step up the socialization of physical training and sports.

By 2015, to complete the building of a stadium of a capacity of 25,000 up to the international competition standards and two swimming pools; to plan land areas for building district physical training and sport centers.

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1. Communication

To renovate and upgrade the road system in order to intensify the exchange between Thai Binh province and Ha Noi as well as other northern delta provinces. To attach importance to building new roads linking with national axial roads, thus creating new economic exchange axes and industrial and urban development spaces.

To build before 2010 a bypass of national highway 10 passing round Thai Binh city, then a bypass section passing round Dong Hung township (from Hoa Binh bridge spanning Tra Ly river to Do T-junction).

To upgrade and expand national highway 39 to reach the grade-III delta road standards by 2010.

The Government will soon commence the construction of Thanh Hoa ' Ninh Binh ' Nam Dinh ' Thai Binh ' Hai Phong ' Quang Ninh coastal road.

To upgrade provincial roads into grade-III or grade-IV delta roads. To continue attaching importance to the development of rural communication system.

To execute projects on renovation and expansion of Diem Dien port and construction of Tan De port.

2. Electricity network

The commodity electricity output supplied to the province will increase 15%/year in the 2006-2011 period and more than 11%/year in the 2011-2020 period.

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3. Post, telecommunications and information network

To continue building modern and universal post and telecommunications infrastructures with advanced technologies so as to meet demands for development of new services and application of information technology, maintain a high and sustainable growth rate, raise the service quality and ensure uninterrupted information and communications in any circumstances, thereby surviving the competition and integration.

To strive for the target that every 100 people will have 13 telephone sets by 2010 and 38 telephone sets by 2020.

4. Water supply and drainage, environmental sanitation and protection

- For urban centers: To build and expand the water supply network for Thai Binh city, townships and industrial parks. To strive for the target that 100% of households will be supplied with tap water at a norm of 180 ' 200 liters per person per day by 2020.

- For rural areas: To develop the multi-scale water supply system suitable to the population distribution and terrain in each area. To strive for the target that 100% of rural population will be supplied with clean water by 2020.

- To build and upgrade water drainage networks for different areas, attach importance to investment in the system for treatment of production and daily-life wastewater before it is discharged into the common water drainage system.

- In parallel with the promotion of economic development in the direction of industrialization and modernization and urban development, it is necessary to pay attention to environmental protection, conservation of natural landscape and maintenance of urban sanitation.

5. To closely combine socio-economic development with defense and security maintenance; to build up the all-people defense posture combined with the people's security posture; to get the province's armed forces ready for all assigned tasks and build a number of defense works in some strategic areas in the province.

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VI. SPATIAL ORGANIZATION ORIENTATIONS

1. Land use orientations

To actively, thriftily and efficiently tap the land potential for provincial socio-economic development. To intensify the auction of land use rights or bidding for projects involving land use; to develop the real estate market under the Land Law and relevant laws.

By 2020, the urban land area will be around 3,340 hectares and the land area for industrial development will be around 3,200 hectares, accounting for 1.94% of the province's total natural land area; the rural residential land area will be around 11,200 hectares, accounting for 6.8% of the province's total natural land area; the land area for communication works will be around 10,700 hectares, accounting for 6.5% of the province's total natural land area; and the land area for the system of irrigation works will be around 12,200 hectares, accounting for 7.4% of the province's total natural land area.

2. Development of urban centers and rural population areas

To strive for an urbanization rate of 12.4% by 2010, 22.3% by 2015 and around 40% by 2020.

To develop and expand Thai Binh city with an additional area of 1,500-2,000 hectares, and strive for the target that in the 2010-2015 period Thai Binh city will be recognized as a grade-II city.

To build infrastructures of townships and commune centers in rural areas in the direction of urbanization. To rationally locate the system of social infrastructures, such as: entertainment and recreation centers, sport facilities, greeneries, healthcare and educational establishments, garbage and wastewater treatment works.

3. Development of a number of economic routes and axes

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4. Development of rural and coastal areas

For rural areas: Along with the restructuring of agricultural production, to restructure rural economy in the direction of promoting agricultural production, cottage industries, handicrafts, craft villages and services.

For coastal areas: To structure economic sectors in the direction of integrated economic development. To quickly provide services of supply of aquatic breeds and prevention and combat of epidemics and diseases for aquatic species in order to quickly expand the aquaculture areas; build fishery logistics establishments and develop fishing and processing means.

VII. MAJOR DEVELOPMENT SOLUTIONS

1. Mobilizing investment capital sources

To satisfy the aforesaid investment needs, it is necessary to devise measures to actively mobilize capital sources, mainly internal sources and to mobilize to the utmost the capital source from the land fund for urban, industrial and handicraft development, attaching importance to attraction of capital from non-state economic sectors and socialization of such domains as healthcare, education, culture and sport.

2. Mechanisms and policies

To continue thorough administrative reforms so as to simplify administrative procedures and create the best conditions for all economic sectors to participate in development investment.

3. Coordinating the development of Thai Binh province with the development of other provinces in the region

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4. Developing human resources

5. Developing sciences and technologies, and protecting the environment

6. Applying appropriate measures to encourage and support non-state economic sectors

7. Drawing up a tentative list of projects prioritized for investment study (see the enclosed Appendix).

VIII. ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MASTER PLAN

- After the master plan on the province's socio-economic development is approved, it must be propagated and popularized to draw attention of the people and investors at home and abroad, with a view to mobilizing all resources for its implementation.

- To elaborate plannings on development of branches and domains and detailed plannings.

- To organize the implementation of the master plan through five-year and annual socio-economic development plans. Annual plans must be consistent with the approved master plan's objectives and targets set for each period.

- To supervise and inspect development investment under the master plan. To enhance the responsibility of all levels, branches and localities for implementing the master plan. At the end of each planning period (2010, 2015 and 2020), to organize the appraisal of implementation of the master plan in such period, and supplement and adjust its objectives to suit the practical situation.

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- Socio-economic development master plans of districts and towns; plannings on development of the urban system and population quarters; construction planning; land use planning and plans; development plannings of branches and domains, etc., in order to ensure the comprehensive and synchronous development.

- Study, formulation and promulgation according to its competence or submission to competent state agencies for promulgation of a number of mechanisms and policies suitable to the province's development requirements in each period, in order to attract and mobilize resources for implementation of the master plan.

Article 3.- To assign the concerned ministries and branches to assist the People's Committee of Thai Binh province in studying and elaborating the above-said plans and plannings; to study, formulate and submit to competent state agencies for promulgation a number of mechanisms and policies suitable with the province's socio-economic development requirements in each period in order to mobilize and efficiently use resources, promote and attract investment, etc., thus ensuring the fulfillment of the province's socio-economic development objectives, tasks and orientations stated in the master plan. To accelerate the investment in and execution of projects and works of regional scale and nature and important to the province's development for which investment decisions have been issued. To study and consider adjustments or supplements to branch development plannings, plans on investment in relevant projects and works eligible for investment specified in the master plan.

Article 4.- This Decision takes effect 15 days after its publication in "CONG BAO."

Article 5.- The president of the People's Committee of Thai Binh province, ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies and heads of government-attached agencies shall implement this Decision.

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LIST OF PROJECTS PRIORITIZED FOR INVESTMENT STUDY
(Promulgated together with the Prime Ministers Decision No. 262/2006/QD-TTg of November 14, 2006)

I. INDUSTRIES, COTTAGE INDUSTRIES AND HANDICRAFT

1. Project on building of infrastructures of industrial parks.

2. Project on building of a nitrogenous fertilizer plant of a capacity of 300,000 tons/year.

3. Project on exploration and exploitation of natural gas in sea areas of Thai Binh province.

4. Project on an industrial-agricultural mechanical engineering factory in Thai Binh city.

5. Investment project on a factory manufacturing modern ship hulls for building new ships of a tonnage of 3,000-5,000 tons each.

6. Project on development of Tan De and Tra Ly shipbuilding complexes and an industrial complex for building new ships of a tonnage of 6,500 tons each and repairing ships in Diem Dien.

7. Project on a vegetable, fruit and foodstuff processing plant of a capacity of 100,000 tons.

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9. Project on building of a plant for mineral water production, which is expected to be located in Tien Hai and have a capacity of around 10 million liters/year.

II. INFRASTRUCTURES

1. Project on upgrading and expansion of national highway 39, provincial roads 39B and 217 up to the grade-III delta road standards, and road 216 up to the grade-IV delta road standards.

2. Project on dredging and combat of deposit extension in Diem Dien port.

3. Project on building of Thanh Hoa Ninh Binh Nam Dinh Hai Phong Quang Ninh road.

4. Project on building of belt roads bypassing Thai Binh city and townships.

5. Project on building of garbage treating plants in Thai Binh city and in northern and southern areas of the province.

6. Project on upgrading of the irrigation system of Thai Binh province (building of headwater pumping stations, and renovation of the system of canals and rivers).

7. Project on solidification of sea and river dikes, embankments.

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1. Project on building of a hi-tech plant variety research and production center.

2. Project on building of a hi-tech livestock breed research and production center.

3. Project on production restructuring and building of a concentrated aquaculture zone.

IV. PROJECTS ON DEVELOPMENT OF TOURISM AND SERVICES

1. Project on building of a bridge leading to Con Vanh and infrastructure of Con Vanh-Con Thu eco-tourist resort (Tien Hai).

2. Project on building of infrastructure of Dong Chau tourist resort (Tien Hai).

3. Project on building of a commercial, trade fair and exhibition center for the whole region on an area of 5 hectares.

V. PROJECTS ON CULTURAL AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

1. Project on an education, labor and social affairs center

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3. Thai Binh citys detoxification center.

4. Project on upgrading and expansion of Thai Binh job-training shool.

5. Project on upgrading of the provinces general hospital.

6. Project on building of the provinces stadium.

7. Culture and Arts College.

8. Economics and Technique College.

9. Upgrading of classrooms of upper secondary schools.

10. A university (upgraded from Thai Binh Teachers Training College).

11. Embellishment of Tran kings temple and relics of Tran dynasty.

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13. Job training and placement center.

* Note: The locations, land areas and total capital amounts of the above-listed projects will be calculated, selected and specifically determined at the stage of formulation and submission for approval of investment projects, depending on the demands for and capabilities of balancing and mobilizing investment capital in each period.-