According to the conference, the provinces and cities in the region saw an average increase of 7.86 points in their PCI from 2006 to 2010, much higher than the entire country’s 5.81 points.
For the first time, the region’s provinces were all above average in PCI; four of them were in the mid-high group, eight in the high group and one in the excellent group.
The Mekong Delta also accounted for three of the 10 provinces with biggest improvement in their rankings, namely Bac Lieu, Soc Trang and Tra Vinh. The region continues to be classified in the three groups with good growth, stability and many positive changes.
“The PCI has really become a forum for the business community,” said Le Minh Hoan, Chairman of the Dong Thap provincial People’s Committee. “This index helps improve the quality of economic governance in a practical way. The VCCI has contributed to healthy and effective competition between localities and enterprises.”
However, analyses at the conference pointed out some concerns over the region’s economic governance. For example, infrastructure, human resources, the business climate, and promoting the region’s image have not received a large amount of investment.
The Mekong Delta is also vulnerable to a poor investment structure, which has only attracted small-scale investors with outdated technology.
Given this situation, economists said that Mekong provinces should increase both the quantity and quality of labour training, and access to information to improve the transparency of the business climate.
“Anyway, the PCI is only an external assessment by corporations,” said Vo Hung Dung, Director of the VCCI branch in Can Tho. “The crucial thing is to formulate sound new strategies for attracting investment, not simply racing to improve the PCI.”
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