HO CHI MINH CITY - Changing the Main Development Direction Towards the South

This is the opinion of the Ministry of Construction regarding adjustment to HCMC's master plan. This latest development not only is an important socio-economic development strategy for leaders of the city government, but it also draws attention to the five million population in HCMC, who are sensitive to the term "planning".

Development Toward the East is Frozen
The Government's decision on HCMC's development orientation toward Nha Be-Binh Chanh was previously of secondary importance. Now according to 1753/BXD , it becomes the first priority for the year 2000 to 2012. Why is there a change for development toward the South to top priority from a secondary position behind the more favoured development direction toward the East (Thu Duc)?

Originally, development spanning over the Saigon river toward the East (or Northeast) was favored because of the relatively high elevation of the land thought to be more suitable for construction. In addition, the East also contains an important transportation junction, the National Highway 1A intersection with National Highway 51 to Bien Hoa and Vung Tau. Clustered n the Thu Duc area is Linh Trung EPZ, PSs of Binh Chieu and Cat Lai, and new development areas under planning. However, planning is one thing, reality is another.

The largest and most infamous project of the East was the new urban development for Thu Thiem. Many Government and HCMC People's Committee decrees and decisions were made on the proposals presented by investors, (even the Prime Minister and relevant departments made made inspection trips)... After five years of planning, there is no development as suggested of the many proposals presented. After two years the German company Dywidag Euromill Group gave up and left after spending a lot of money on research, transportation and lobbying to build a bridge and to develop Northern Thu Thiem. Another large scale failure is the project for a new city center in the An Phu area, a joint venture between Hong Kong City Horse and the HCMC's Urban Development Services Company. This was one of the two largest urban development projects in Vietnam with an investment capital of USD 997 million. Its license was approved on December 30th, 1997.

The Biggest constraint is access across Sigon River, and only when bridges are built can the East be ready for development. The Thu Thiem Bridge faced a lot of problems because the site location cannot be decided on. Tunneling under the Sigon River is too expensive and creates many problems (such as limited forms of transportation, lack of safety guarantee, fire hazards, etc...). The second Saigon River bridge has yet to locate an investment capital source.

Primary Parrallel City
Due to their strategic locations, districts such as: Nha Be, Can Gio, Binh Chanh are considered to be HCMC's gateway to the East Sea and the Mekong Delta. Orienting HCMC's development toward the South are a range of investment projects that have already taken a shape immediatley after their planning stages, such as Tan Thuan EPZ, Saigon South Parkway, Saigon South New City Center, Hiep Phuoc IP, Provincial Road 34. In 1997, Tan Thuan EPZ ranked third among the most successful EPZ's in the world. Saigon South Parkway will officially open on February 14, 1998. This will expedite the transport and disbursement of goods and merchandise from HCMC port to the Mekong Delta. Stemming from the development of this road, the Saigon South New City Centre (with an area of 2,600 hectares) received approval from the Prime Minister and began to take shape immediatley. Saigon South already has 18 projects with an aggregate capital investment of USD 61 million, and four are already in operation. Hipe Phuoc IP is approximately 20 kilometers from downtown HCMC via Provincial Road 34 and is building its infrastructure.

Mr. Le Qua, Manager of the Southern Transport and Communications Research and Development Center stated that if construction of the Phu My bridge from Tan Thuan across the Saigon River connecting National Road 51 via Cat Lai proceeds immediately, the bridge will solve many of the city's problems. If the Phu My bridge is constructed the transportation linkage between the Southeast and the Southwest will be considerably shortened. Also, the transportation of merchandise from the HCMC port will be controlled helping reduce traffic congestion and air pollution in the city.

When Speaking with Mr. Le Van Nam, Chief Architect of HCMC, Mr Nam shared that the successive development projects of the South and Southeast HCMC have orientated the development of the city toward the East sea. Thi is in line with current focus on urban development and the marine economy development.

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