HIGHLIGHTS
- Logistics in Ho Chi Minh City has not been developed to match its potential
- Removing difficulties for the logistics industry to take off
FULL ARTICLE
The knots have not been untied
Speaking at the seminar “Logistics Ho Chi Minh City takes off” on April 14, Mr. Bui Ta Hoang Vu, Director of Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade, said that the city’s logistics industry currently has some bottlenecks. In particular, the fact that the infrastructure is not synchronized and complete is a very important thing. In addition, although the city has up to 4,000 enterprises operating in the field of logistics, the application of information technology (IT) in the industry is not high. This makes logistics costs high, making it difficult for businesses operating in the industry to compete and take advantage of opportunities from trade agreements.
Besides, Ms. Dang Thi Minh Phuong, Chairwoman of the Ho Chi Minh City Logistics Association (HLA), said that the customs sector plays an important role in deciding whether all goods flows are stable or not. Although the customs sector has recently received positive changes, thanks to the simplification of customs procedures. However, it is still necessary to quickly synchronize the infrastructure and train a quality workforce to accelerate the development of the customs industry.
What should be done to solve the problem?
According to Mr. Bui Ta Hoang Vu, in the implementation plan of Ho Chi Minh City Logistics Development Project for the period 2025-2030, 6 solutions have been clearly stated. In particular, the development of a logistics center system is the most urgent. Currently, logistics centers, whether large or small, are developing spontaneously, without clear public-private coordination. Therefore, in the coming period, it is necessary to promote the development of logistics centers in the form of calling for investment.
In which, by 2023, it is necessary to complete all consulting procedures and call for investment in 3 logistics centers of Thu Duc in areas near Long Binh port, Cat Lai port, and high-tech park. Along with that, it is necessary to promote links with neighboring provinces such as Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Long An, Tay Ninh v.v. “Especially, in the development direction of the logistics industry, it is necessary to focus on digital transformation.” Mr. Bui Ta Hoang Vu added.
Regarding the customs industry, the city has recently made many recommendations to cut logistics costs and implement a project to prevent congestion at Cat Lai port as well as other areas. In particular, for better customs-related transactions, there must be a centralized management system and electronic customs transactions.
The Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department also boldly proposed to collect seaport infrastructure fees from, as well as find ways to propose measures to develop a synchronous ecosystem including tourism, digital transformation v.v. Regarding personnel, the Department Ho Chi Minh City Customs can combine HLA and schools to assist in human resource training.
Ho Chi Minh City has a favorable location, has a deep-water port and can connect well with areas. Importantly, it has many industrial parks, high-tech parks with many signed agreements. Therefore, if the bottlenecks are removed, Ho Chi Minh City’s logistics industry will definitely take off in the near future.
Khanh Huyen Nguyen
Alibaba’s 2nd Smart Logistics Park project in Vietnam
