HO CHI MINH CITY INDUSTRIAL PARKS

KCN thành phố Hồ Chí Minh thu hút đầu tư

Location and General Information

Ho Chi Minh City Industrial Parks Development. Ho Chi Minh City is located in southern Vietnam, approximately 1,730 km from Hanoi. Commonly known by its former name, Saigon, it is the largest city in Vietnam and is expected to become a major metropolis in the near future.
Ho Chi Minh City is a centrally governed city classified as a special urban area of Vietnam, along with the capital city, Hanoi. It serves as a significant hub for the economy, culture, education, training, science, and technology, as well as an international gateway. In 2022, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Hai Phong were among the top 10 provinces and cities contributing most to the national GDP. Covering only 0.6% of the country’s area with a total of 2,095 km² and a population of nearly 9.2 million people, Ho Chi Minh City remains the leading contributor to the national GDP.

Geographical Location

Situated at the heart of Southeast Asia, Ho Chi Minh City is an essential transportation hub, connecting road, waterway, and air routes, thereby facilitating links between provinces and establishing itself as a vital international gateway.
Coordinates: 10°10′ – 10°38′ N and 106°22′ – 106°54′ E.

North: Binh Duong Province
West: Tay Ninh Province and Long An Province
East: Dong Nai Province and Ba Ria – Vung Tau Province
South: East Sea and Tien Giang Province

Administrative Units

As a dynamic and continuously evolving urban area, Ho Chi Minh City is divided into 22 districts, including 1 city, 16 urban districts, and 5 rural districts.

1 city: Thu Duc City
16 districts: District 1, District 3, District 4, District 5, District 6, District 7, District 8, District 10, District 11, District 12, Binh Thanh District, Binh Tan District, Go Vap District, Phu Nhuan District, Tan Binh District, Tan Phu District
5 rural districts: Binh Chanh, Can Gio, Cu Chi, Hoc Mon, Nha Be

Population

Ho Chi Minh City is the most populous city in Vietnam, with an estimated population of 9,166,800 in 2021, accounting for 9.3% of the national population. The average population density is 4,375 people per km², the highest in the country. Approximately 7.24 million people (79%) live in urban areas, while 1.93 million people (21%) reside in rural areas. The actual population, including unregistered residents, was estimated at nearly 14 million in 2018.

Education

As Vietnam’s largest city, Ho Chi Minh City is also a leading educational center. The Vietnam National University – Ho Chi Minh City comprises six government-affiliated universities. Additionally, major institutions such as the University of Architecture, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Banking University, University of Law, University of Economics, University of Education, Open University, and University of Finance – Marketing are key contributors to higher education in Vietnam.
About 40% of university and college students in the city come from other provinces. The city is also home to 40 international schools, managed by consulates and educational companies.

Transportation Infrastructure

Ho Chi Minh City features a diverse and modern infrastructure system, integrating road, railway, air, and waterway networks.

Railway

The railway system includes intra-urban and suburban routes managed by the Railway Union No. 3, as well as the North-South railway line. Major stations include Song Than and Saigon, along with smaller stations like Di An, Thu Duc, Binh Trieu, and Go Vap. Railway freight accounts for around 6% of cargo volume, while passenger volume is about 0.6%.

Urban Railway

The city has planned an urban railway system with 8 lines covering 172 km. Two lines are under construction:

Metro Line 1 (Ben Thanh – Suoi Tien): Started in August 2012, length 19.7 km, with 2.6 km underground and 17.1 km elevated, 14 stations, investment of over VND 47 trillion, expected to operate commercially in 2023.
Metro Line 2 (Ben Thanh – Tham Luong): Started in 2013, delayed to 2023, expected to operate after 2026.

Roadways

The city has a modern road infrastructure, including two major expressways:

Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay Expressway
Ho Chi Minh City – Trung Luong Expressway
Main highways such as National Highway 1, National Highway 13, and National Highway 22 connect the city with the region. The East-West Boulevard and Thu Thiem Tunnel also contribute to efficient traffic management.

Air Transport

Tan Son Nhat International Airport, located just 7 km from the city center, is the largest airport in Vietnam, serving over 41 million passengers annually with 43 international airlines. The construction of the third terminal aims to increase capacity to 45 million passengers per year. In the future, Long Thanh International Airport will alleviate congestion at Tan Son Nhat.

Waterway Transport

The city’s waterway transportation includes inter-provincial routes, such as the hydrofoil connecting Nha Rong Port with Vung Tau. There are around 50 ferry and boat stations, including the largest, Cat Lai Ferry, linking Thu Duc City with Nhon Trach District, Dong Nai Province.

Seaports

Ho Chi Minh City has four major seaports: Saigon, Ben Nghe, Nha Be, and Tan Cang, along with several river ports like Binh Dong, Tan Thuan, Ton That Thuyet, Binh Loi, and Binh Phuoc. Saigon Port, one of Vietnam’s largest, handles 25% of the country’s total seaborne cargo. Despite the capacity of these ports, logistics between road, sea, and river transport still face challenges.

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Economic Overview of Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City plays a leading role in Vietnam’s economy. The city accounts for 0.6% of the area and 9.3% of the population of Vietnam, yet contributes 20.5% of the national GDP, 27.9% of industrial production value, and 37.9% of foreign projects.

In 2021, the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) reached VND 1,298,791 billion (equivalent to USD 56.47 billion), with the service sector accounting for approximately 63.4%, the industry and construction sector 22.4%, and the agriculture, forestry, and fishery sector only 0.6%. The GRDP per capita in 2021 was VND 142.6 million (equivalent to USD 6,173).

Budget revenue in 2012 was estimated at VND 215,975 billion, rising to VND 383,703 billion by 2021. Of this, domestic revenue in 2021 reached VND 253,281 billion, exceeding the estimate by 2%, while revenue from import and export activities reached VND 116,400 billion, surpassing the estimate by 7%.

The economy of Ho Chi Minh City is diverse, ranging from mining, fisheries, agriculture, and manufacturing to tourism and finance. The economic structure of the city is as follows: the state sector accounts for 33.3%, the non-state sector 44.6%, and the remaining portion belongs to the foreign-invested sector. In terms of economic sectors, services hold the highest proportion at 51.1%. The rest includes industry and construction at 47.7%, while agriculture, forestry, and fisheries make up only 1.2%. The city’s industrial sector is focusing on high-tech fields to improve economic efficiency.

Trade

Regarding trade, Ho Chi Minh City has a diversified system of shopping centers, supermarkets, and markets. Ben Thanh Market is a symbol of the city’s long-standing commercial exchange and continues to play an important role. In recent decades, many modern shopping centers such as Saigon Trade Centre and Diamond Plaza have emerged. The city’s consumption level is significantly higher than that of other provinces and is 1.5 times that of the capital city of Hanoi.

Despite its economic growth, Ho Chi Minh City still faces numerous challenges. Only 10% of industrial facilities in the city possess modern technology. Infrastructure is outdated and overloaded, the consumer price index is high, social problems persist, and complex administrative procedures hinder economic progress. The city’s infrastructure investment does not match its economic role due to a decreasing percentage of budget retention.

Economic Performance in 2021

In 2021, Ho Chi Minh City’s GRDP experienced an unprecedented decline of 6.78% due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the service sector declining the most at -54.93%. However, sectors such as information and communications, finance-banking-insurance, education, and healthcare recorded positive growth, notably the finance sector at 8.16%. After easing social distancing at the end of 2021, the city planned to recover and develop the economy in 2022. During the first eight months of 2022, the economy almost fully recovered.

Economic Development in 2022

The year 2022 was crucial for Ho Chi Minh City as it marked the economic and social recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic. From a historic decline of 6.78% in 2021, the city’s economic growth outpaced the national average in 2022.

Excluding the healthcare and social assistance sectors, which saw negative growth (-2.77%), the remaining sectors showed remarkable recovery: wholesale and retail increased by 10.47%, transportation and warehousing by 5.2%, information and communications by 9.13%, finance, banking, and insurance by 8.77%, real estate business by 4.42%, scientific and technical services by 6.04%, and education and training by 5.45%. Notably, the accommodation and food services sector grew by 47.05% compared to the same period.

The city’s GRDP in 2022 was estimated at VND 1,479,227 billion, up 9.03% from 2021. Agriculture, forestry, and fishery increased by 3.74%; industry and construction by 11.95%; trade and services by 8.37%; and product taxes by 7.41%.

Industrial Production and Key Economic Structure

Industrial production, considered a “bright spot” in economic recovery, saw the Industrial Production Index (IIP) rise by 13.9% in 2022, including manufacturing up by 13.8%, electricity production and distribution by 13.0%, and water supply and waste treatment by 9.4%.

The economic structure was led by trade and services, accounting for 64%, followed by industry and construction at 22.1%. Notably, nine key service sectors accounted for 58.7% of GRDP and 91.7% of the service sector.

Development Goals for 2023 and Beyond

The theme for 2023 is “Improving Public Service Efficiency, Promoting Administrative Reform, and Enhancing Investment Environment.” The city has set 17 key targets for 2023 across five groups: 7 economic indicators, 3 social indicators, 2 urban indicators, 1 administrative reform indicator, and 4 public security indicators.

By 2030, the goal is to make Ho Chi Minh City a modern, dynamic city, a digital economy leader, and a hub for economics, finance, commerce, culture, education, science, and technology within Southeast Asia. By 2045, the city aims to become an economic and financial center in Asia, an attractive global destination, and a highly developed metropolis comparable to major global cities.

Ho Chi Minh City Industrial Parks Development

Despite having only three export processing zones and 14 industrial parks, Ho Chi Minh City maintains a high occupancy rate. The city’s industrial zones have attracted over USD 12 billion in investment, providing jobs for more than 276,000 workers and contributing nearly VND 50,000 billion to the state budget annually.

The city continues to develop two main groups of industrial parks:

Newly established industrial parks such as Tan Phu Trung, An Ha, and Le Minh Xuan 3, focusing on high-tech and supporting industries.
Planned but not yet implemented parks, including Le Minh Xuan 2, Phong Phu, and Tay Bac Cu Chi expansion.

Developing Key Industries

Ho Chi Minh City focuses on developing four key industries: mechanical engineering, electronics and IT, food processing, and chemical-pharmaceutical-rubber. The city aims to become a smart, modern industrial and service city by 2030, focusing on circular and green economies in line with Industry 4.0 trends.