Hanoi to bank on Industry 4.0 for rapid and sustainable development: Mayor

Hanoi would continue to revise the growth model and restructure the economy on the foundation of science, technology, innovation from the Industry 4.0 to ensure rapid and sustainable development, according to Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Chu Ngoc Anh.

Chairman of Hanoi People's Committee Chu Ngoc Anh. Photo: Thanh Hai.

As part of these efforts, the city is set to promote the development of the knowledge economy, urban economy and innovative startups, Mr. Anh said at a conference discussing Hanoi’s socio-economic performance in the past four years on September 30.

Mr. Anh added the city aims to improve the business environment and put in place drastic measures to raise Hanoi’s rankings in major classifications, including the Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index (PAPI), the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) and the Public Administration Reform (PAR), among others.

In the coming time, the mayor expected Hanoi to better mobilize resources for infrastructure improvement and environmental protection for further development in the next period, especially in the city’s southern region towards a balance growth.

Mr. Anh also pointed to the necessity in improving efficiency in operation of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and speed up the process of privatization, divestment of state capital in state firms.

More efficient policies are needed to support the private sector, including small and medium enterprises for socio-economic development, Mr. Anh stated.

In the 2016 – 2020 period, Hanoi’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP) expanded at an average of 7.39%, reaching the target of 7.3 – 7.8% and higher than the economic growth of 6.93% in the past five years.

Hanoi’s economic size in 2020 is set to reach VND1,060 trillion (US$45 billion), resulting in GRDP per capita of US$5,420, 1.8 times as high as the national average.

There have also been a significant improvement in productivity, which is estimated at an average of VND258.3 million (US$11,173), 1.65 times as high as the national average. This translated into a productivity growth of 6.15% in the 2016 – 2020 period, exceeding the target.

In the first nine months of 2020, Hanoi’s GRDP growth was reported at 3.27% year-on-year, 1.54 times as high as Vietnam’s (2.12%).

This year, the city targets its growth to range from 4.5% - 5% to ensure the economic expansion at 1.3-fold the national average.