Ba Ria – Vung Tau attracts investment as a "launchpad" for growth

Geopolitical conflicts, trade wars, and other complicated and uncertain events have caused substantial upheaval in the global and regional circumstances in 2024, and these developments are having a significant effect on the Vietnamese economy. But with the leadership of the Party Committee, the People's Council, and the People's Committee of Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, this province has surmounted the "headwinds" and achieved notable successes in all sectors through correct, adaptable, and proactive policies and decisions.

Impressive growth

The Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province People's Committee reports that the province's economy has made significant achievements in 2024. As a result, the majority of the province's economic indicators have increased in comparison to the same time the previous year and have surpassed the annual goals. This serves as the foundation for the province's future confidence in sustainable development. With gas and crude oil excluded, Ba Ria-Vung Tau's gross regional product (GRDP) rose by 10.52%, the most in the previous ten years. 

The value of Ba Ria-Vung Tau's industrial production, excluding gas and crude oil, also rose by 12.91%. The province's overall economic growth has benefited greatly from this. The province's industrial and processing sectors play a crucial role in driving economic growth.

The industrial parks in Ba Ria and Vung Tau now contain 41 foreign and domestic investment projects totaling USD 2.357 billion in investment capital and 218.38 hectares of land. With 606 ongoing investment projects and 3,651 hectares of total leased space, the industrial zones have an occupancy rate of 63.04% among the 14 authorized zones.

Presently, seven of the eleven industrial clusters in Ba Ria-Vung Tau are operational, drawing 31 secondary projects with a total registered capital of VND 4,969 billion, a leased area of 95.98/161 hectares, and an occupancy rate of roughly 59.32% of the total operational area, creating jobs for roughly 8,200 people.

Ba Ria-Vung Tau's trade-service industry grew significantly in 2024 as well. With a large supply of items guaranteeing service to the people, it is anticipated that overall retail sales of goods will increase by 13.42%. Excluding crude oil and gas, the export turnover increased 6.97% to over USD 5,647 million, with growth in nearly all exported goods.


Notably, transportation, warehousing, and transportation support services revenue grew by 11.25%, significantly above the 4% target that was originally set. Because of the work done to upgrade the infrastructure, the port cluster is now able to accommodate huge ships without being reliant on the tide.

The tourism industry has also expanded fairly successfully. Revenue from travel and lodging services grew 13.71% and 13.12%, respectively, in 2024, drawing 16.12 million tourists, an increase of 13.11%. There are now 1,360 tourist lodging options in Ba Ria-Vung Tau, including 70 hotels with ratings ranging from 1 to 5 stars. A total of 2,966 hectares are covered by its 132 tourism projects, of which 51 are presently operational, 36 are being built, and 45 are in the procedural stage.

“Launchpad" to attract investment

Mr. Nguyen Van Tho, the chairman of the Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province People's Committee, stated that in order to accomplish the growth objectives, the province would continue to accelerate socio-economic development tasks and solutions under its five-year plan in 2025. The Prime Minister-approved Ba Ria–Vung Tau province development plan for the 2021–2030 period, with a vision to 2050, emphasizes the concurrent growth of several sectors.

Ba Ria Vung Tau will concentrate on encouraging and drawing investment into significant economic sectors, growth pillars, economic corridors, and development axes to advance the provincial economy. In Mr. Nguyen Van Tho's opinion, the province will simultaneously focus on carrying out the assigned projects, such as the project to turn Ba Ria-Vung Tau into a national maritime economic center, the project to build extensive industrial-service-urban complexes in Phu My town, the project to modernize Cai Mep-Thi Vai International Gateway into the nation's largest transshipment port, comparable to those in Asia, and the project to turn Ba Ria-Vung Tau into a top-notch tourism destination…

"Ba Ria-Vung Tau will focus on offering assistance and swiftly removing roadblocks in the near future in order to speed up legal procedures and encourage the operation of industrial production projects. In order to encourage the completion of interregional transport projects, it will also aggressively coordinate with relevant provinces, cities, and parties," Mr. Nguyen Van Tho stated.

The Chairman of the Ba Ria-Vung Tau Small and Medium Enterprises Association, Mr. Pham Van Triem, believed that Ba Ria-Vung Tau would have a lot of tasks to do to welcome the new wave of FDI by 2025, given the intense rivalry for FDI from various Southeast Asian nations. In this regard, the province must keep evaluating and modifying its foreign investment regulations to reflect current international trends, paying special attention to industries and sectors that can support the energy transition, green growth, and digital transformation.

Additionally, Ba Ria-Vung Tau should continue to advocate for administrative reforms in order to increase its competitiveness by creating an attractive investment environment. Later on, it will secure the "launchpad" for Ba Ria-Vung Tau to "take off" on its integration and growth route, creating more opportunities for businesses and investors.