On March 20, 2025, a Government Mission led by Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong, Member of the Central Executive Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), held a working session with the Provincial People's Committee of Ben Tre on the situations of production and business operations, public investment, import-export activities, and the implementation of the national target programs in the province.
Governor Nguyen Thi Hong delivers a speech at the working session (Photo: Duc Khanh)
At the session, Mr. Nguyen Truc Son, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee of Ben Tre, provided a detailed report on the province's socio-economic situation and the key areas of interest to the Government Mission.
As of the end of 2024, Ben Tre's Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) growth rate reached 5.68%. The agricultural and aquaculture production remained stable, with no major disease outbreaks with the livestock or poultry populations in the province. The industrial and light industry production increased by 7.93%, while the total retail sales of goods and consumer service revenues rose by 11.58%.
For 2025, the Government has set an economic growth target of 8% for Ben Tre. This is considered an ambitious goal given the province's current development conditions. Therefore, right from the beginning of the year, the Provincial People's Committee of Ben Tre had implemented several comprehensive breakthrough solutions across all economic sectors.
Specifically, in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sector, Ben Tre aims to expand the cultivation area, increase the production volume, and enhance the value of agricultural and aquaculture products. The province plans to develop an additional 700 hectares of organic coconut farming integrated with giant freshwater prawn farming in the coconut gardens, and invest in 100 hectares of high-tech marine shrimp farming.
In the industry and construction sector, Ben Tre is working towards the completion of the key projects, such as the Phu Thuan Industrial Park. The province is also expediting the connection of two wind power projects, Sunpro and Thanh Hai 2 - 3 - 4, into the national grid.
Regarding the service sector, Ben Tre will focus on expanding the domestic trade market, implementing consumption stimulus programs, and encouraging the credit flows into production and business activities to achieve a double-digit credit growth. The province also aims to promote logistics and transportation services.
As of the end of 2024, Ben Tre had disbursed over VND 4,578.6 billion of public investment capital, reaching 88.5% of the planned budget.
At the working session, Ms. Ho Thi Hoang Yen, Acting Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairwoman of the Provincial People's Council of Ben Tre, emphasized that in order to achieve the 8% GRDP growth target in 2025, it would require comprehensive development efforts across all economic sectors, especially in the areas where Ben Tre has advantages and the key provincial and regional projects.
Ms. Yen highlighted that the credit capital from the local banking system plays a crucial role in supporting the development of the big businesses that drive the provincial industries. She stated that if the commercial banks could focus on financing and resolving difficulties for export processing projects, infrastructure projects, social housing development, and power transmission line construction for wind and solar power projects, it would significantly contribute to achieving Ben Tre's 2025 economic growth targets.
Governor Nguyen Thi Hong's guiding remarks
In her guiding remarks at the working session, Governor Nguyen Thi Hong, head of the Government Mission, requested the Provincial People's Committee of Ben Tre and the provincial Departments to build upon the positive achievements of the previous year and strive to meet the 2025 socio-economic growth targets set by the Government.
The Government Mission works with the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial People's Committee of Ben Tre (Photo: Duc Khanh)
Reviewing the economic performance of the first two months of 2025, Governor Nguyen Thi Hong noted that Ben Tre's economy had shown many positive progress. The province's first-quarter GRDP was projected to grow by 6.28% against that of the same time last year. "This is a high growth rate that will provide a solid foundation for achieving the full-year economic targets," she emphasized.
Governor Nguyen Thi Hong instructed the representatives of the Government Ministries and agencies in the Mission to take note of the province’s recommendations and offer solutions for expediting the land clearance for the key projects, accelerating the public investment disbursement, and implementing the Government’s incentive programs for specific economic sector.
She also emphasized the need to resolve the obstacles related to the sustainable development of agricultural and aquaculture raw material areas, the establishment of the linkages along the value chains, the large-scale agricultural production models, and the green economic projects in response to salinity intrusion and climate change.
Banking sector’s initiatives
Regarding the banking sector, Governor Nguyen Thi Hong requested the SBV Regional Branch No.13 and the local credit institutions to continue implementing the directions of the SBV.
Governor Hong further requested the banking system in the region to actively collaborate with the relevant provincial Departments and agencies to assess the actual business and production conditions. This would allow them to identify any challenges and enhance the bank-enterprise connection, thereby addressing any difficulties in the credit relations between the two sides.
Additionally, she emphasized the importance of proactively advising the provincial authorities on the credit operations in alignment with the province's socio-economic development plans, contributing to promoting the province’s economic growth.
HM