(HBO) – Strongly improving economic governance and the business environment is one of the top requirements to create sustainable momentum for attracting resources for socio-economic development. To continue raising the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI), the Hoa Binh provincial People’s Committee has ordered the building of a set of District and Department Competitiveness Index (DDCI) criteria and a plan for surveying businesses’ opinions about the local investment and business environment.
Thanks to authorities’ assistance to handle investment procedures, the Hai Hien Bamboo and Wood joint Stock Company, based in the Mong Hoa Industrial Park in Hoa Binh city, has maintained stable production and business activities.
In 2021, the provincial Business Association devised and proposed the set of DDCI criteria which was applied on a trial basis under the decision of the provincial People’s Committee on March 31, 2021.
For districts, the DDCI consists of nine sub-indexes, namely market entry and licensing; transparency in information access and treatment equality; quality of public services and the single-window divisions; proactivity; administrative procedure implementation and law compliance costs; unoffical charges; production and business assistance; law enforcement efficiency, legal institutions, and security - order; and access to land.
According to the provincial Business Association, the DDCI survey last year revealed many problems, including those related to transparency in information access and treatment equality. While the sub-index of informal charges at departments had the lowest score, the sub-index of access to land and business locations in all district-level localities failed to meet expectations as it was also lower than others.
To boost awareness and action to improve local economic governance and management for the sake of enterprises and investors, the provincial People’s Committee issued the set of DDCI criteria on July 30, 2022.
Hoang Quang Phong, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the DDCI application is critically important since it will create a push for departments and localities in Hoa Binh province to develop stronger resolve and determination to fulfill their duties in supporting businesses. It is also useful for enterprises to report and have their issues solved more quickly.
Only through dialogue and cooperation in an open and constructive spirit can bottlenecks and shortcomings be resolved, helping businesses promote their operations, earn profits, and contribute to the province and the State, he noted./.
Once a mountainous province facing many challenges, Hoa Binh has, after more than a decade of implementing the national target programme on new-style rural area development, emerged as a bright spot in Vietnam’s northern midland and mountainous region. In the first quarter of 2025, the province recorded positive results, paving the way for Hoa Binh to enter a phase of accelerated growth with a proactive and confident mindset.
Hoa Binh province is steadily advancing its agricultural sector through the adoption of high-tech solutions, seen as a sustainable path for long-term development.
The steering committee for key projects of Hoa Binh province convened on May 14 to assess the progress of major ongoing developments
A delegation of Hoa Binh province has attended the "Meet Korea 2025" event, recently held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea (RoK) in Vietnam, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, and the People's Committee of Hung Yen province.
Hoa Binh province joined Vietnam’s national "One Commune, One Product” (OCOP) programme in 2019, not simply as a mountainous region following central policy, but with a clear vision to revive the cultural and agricultural values in its villages and crops.
From just 16 certified products in its inaugural year to 158 by early 2025, the One Commune One Product (OCOP) programme in Hoa Binh province has followed a steady and strategic path. But beyond the numbers, it has reawakened local heritage, turning oranges, bamboo shoots, brocade, and herbal remedies into branded, market-ready goods - and, more profoundly, transformed how local communities value and present their own cultural identity.