An important task mentioned in the Government’s Resolution No. 169/NQ-CP on promulgating the Government's Action Programme to implement the Politburo’s Conclusion No. 79-KL/TW on continuing to implement Resolution No. 43-NQ/TW of the Politburo (term XII) on building and developing Da Nang to 2030, with a vision to 2045, is to mobilise resources to build a pilot Da Nang Free Trade Zone and develop Da Nang into a regional logistics centre.

This task is being vigorously implemented by Da Nang in sync with the contents of Resolution No. 136/2024/QH15 of the National Assembly on organising urban government and piloting a number of specific mechanisms and policies for the development of the city, creating a great driving force for socio-economic growth.

The area behind the Lien Chieu Seaport is being selected to build a regional logistics centre - a functional area of ​​the Da Nang Free Trade Zone associated with Lien Chieu Seaport. Photo: HOANG HIEP

Selection of an integrated free trade zone model

Recently, the city has urgently surveyed and worked with agencies, units, experts, and scientists to select 10 locations for the construction of the Da Nang Free Trade Zone. Most of the locations are positioned next to convenient traffic routes and hubs (airports, seaports, along roads) with favourable conditions for early implementation as per direction from Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at the site inspection on September 1, 2024.

Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment Vo Nguyen Chuong said that although Resolution No. 136/2024/QH15 took effect from January 1, 2025, with its acumen and spirit of drastic participation, the city quickly selected 10 locations for the construction of the Da Nang Free Trade Zone based on learning from international experience.

In particular, countries have chosen locations to build free trade zones based on two very clear criteria: access distance by sea, air, and rail; and the distribution of specific functional areas. In addition, there are two groups of trends in forming and developing free trade zones, including group 1 with the trend of ecology - seaport - logistics and industry, and group 2 with the trend of integrated urban and business without being concentrated in one area.

The 10 locations planned to be selected to build a free trade zone in Da Nang are interwoven between the two aforementioned trends, divided into 3 functional areas including: production areas, logistics areas, and trade - service areas. The characteristic of the Da Nang Free Trade Zone model is that it is attached to Lien Chieu Seaport and is not a special economic zone.

The municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment is the focal agency to help the People's Committee determine relevant information on land, planning, land use plans, terrain, expected compensation and resettlement, environment, climate, land-related procedures, and authority of each department, branch and locality so that the consulting unit can complete the dossier for the city to submit to the central Government for consideration and decision, Mr. Chuong said.

“The municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment has been involved very early in implementing Resolution No. 136/2024/QH15 of the National Assembly, in which it has basically completed the database related to the 10 locations expected to be selected to build the Da Nang Free Trade Zone, in order to serve the requirements of state management and provide to the leaders of the city in serving the construction of the free trade zone", said Mr. Chuong.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Bui Quang Binh, a lecturer of the Faculty of Economics of the University of Economics under the University of Da Nang, who is a representative of the consulting group for the Department of Industry and Trade, the Da Nang Free Trade Zone model is integrated and multi-functional according to the multi-functional interconnected mechanism of "zone within zone". Accordingly, in the 10 locations planned for construction, there will be zones that must choose the mechanism of "zone within zone" and multi-function.

The Da Nang Free Trade Zone model has calculated the inheritance of experience from the construction of free trade zones in the world combined with the actual conditions of the city.

"With a vision to 2030, the Da Nang Free Trade Zone is a dynamic and highly competitive development area in Southeast Asia, attracting high value-added industrial chains with synchronous logistics infrastructure, concentrated at Lien Chieu Seaport. By 2040, Da Nang will be an important destination in the Asia-Pacific region as an international logistics and re-export centre" Associate Professor, Dr. Bui Quang Binh remarked.

Building logistics centres with specialized services

A logistics centre is not simply a warehouse or yard for storing goods, but also integrates many functions and services such as packaging, classification, storage, quarantine, cleaning, disinfection and distribution.

According to the Da Nang Master Plan for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, the city is oriented to become a logistics centre, a gateway for delivery and transportation by road, sea and air with localities and countries on the East-West economic corridor, in the ASEAN region and in the world. Class I, class II logistics centres and specialised ones will be set up.

With the orientation of building the Da Nang Free Trade Zone associated with Lien Chieu Seaport, in which logistics centres to serve as functional areas of the free trade zone, experts suggest that the city should orient the development of specialised logistics services (according to the 3PL, 4PL, 5PL models) at concentrated logistics centres, with high quality and high added value, in order to maximise the advantages of goods through transportation hubs in the city, contributing to making Da Nang a regional logistics centre according to Conclusion No. 79-KL/TW of the Politburo and the Government's action programme.

Dr. Tran Thi Hong Minh, Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, highlighted the importance of investing in modern logistics infrastructure so as to develop the free trade zone. This includes seaports, airports, transportation systems, warehouses and advanced distribution centres.

She stressed the need for Da Nang to synchronously invest in seaports in order to expand cargo handling capacity, meet increasing demand, connect the free trade zone with neighboring areas, and expand the international market.

Prof. Dr. Bui Quang Binh also underlined the significance of the development of logistics services during the building of a free trade zone associated with Lien Chieu Seaport.

Currently, the world's major logistics companies such as DHL, DB Schenker, CJ Logistics, FedEx, Agility, UPS and Aramex are operating and offering services in Da Nang. This is a favourable opportunity for logistics centres in particular and the Da Nang Free Trade Zone in general to connect operations, thereby bringing efficiency and driving force for the city's economic development.

Reporting by HOANG HIEP, MAI QUE - Translating by M.DUNG