Da Nang - an attractive location for Japanese businesses
Da Nang is now home to about 100 Japanese businesses, and 70 of them are manufacturing companies with a total investment of over 330 million USD. These companies are involved in, for example, producing electronic components, developing software outsourcing, manufacturing pulp and nets for export, and processing seafood and agricultural products. They have created over 25,000 jobs for local residents.
Da Nang is one of the 3 largest information technology (IT) hubs in the country. In addition, to welcome more foreign direct investment, the city is seeing a boom in new software parks and dedicated IT zones which cover thousands of hectares. Between January and September 2013, 5 new Japanese-invested IT projects worth 31.4 million USD were granted investment licences.
Workers at the Mabuchi Motor Da Nang Company |
These positive results have been attributed to the city’s favourable investment climate. Da Nang is emerging as one of the most attractive locations in Viet Nam for Japanese investors.
The General Manager of the Tokyo Keiki Precision Technology Company, Mr Michio Saruhashi, said that his company had made the right decision when it chose the Hoa Khanh Industrial Zone in Da Nang as the place to set up a plant to produce hydraulic equipment for the Asian region. He also remarked that the city was attractive to his company due to the very favourable conditions for foreign investors which have been created by the local authorities. He added that recommendations from existing city-based Japanese businesses was another reason for encouraging his company to invest here.
A representative of the Mabuchi Motor Da Nang Company said that his company decided to invest in Da Nang due to the city’s preferential policies for foreign investment and its competitive human resources. The company's earnings growth has been sustained over the past 8 years since it began operating in 2006. The company has helped to provide stable jobs for thousands of local people.
The Vice Chairman of the Japan Information Technology Service Industry Association (JISA), Mr Takashi Igarashi, said that after Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang was Viet Nam’s third most attractive location in 2013, as perceived by JISA. He also expressed his belief that Japanese businesses would seek more investment opportunities and partners in the city’s IT sector in 2014 and in the years ahead.