Da Nang's top ten developments of 2016
1 Special mechanisms approved for Da Nang
On 1 November, the national government approved special mechanisms for Da Nang concerning investment, finance, budgetary status and decentralisation.
Under the mechanisms, Da Nang will be allowed to access loans from domestic financial sources through the issuance of local government bonds, as well as loans from the national government’s budget and other related sources in compliance with the national laws. The city will subsidise a part of the loan interest rates for local individuals and organisations who deploy important local socio-economic projects.
The intention of the mechanisms is to help Da Nang become one of the largest urban areas in Viet Nam, and a major hub of industry, trade and services in the central region, by 2020.
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| Prime Minister Phuc (front centre) and some of Da Nang’s key leaders |
2 'City of 4 Safe Programmes' campaign launched
On 27 December, the Da Nang Party Committee’s Executive Board launched the 'City of 4 Safe Programmes' campaign for 2017.
Municipal Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Xuan Anh noted that 2017 will be the ‘Year of 4 Safe Programmes'. He therefore urged local relevant agencies to make greater efforts to ensure security, traffic safety, food safety and hygiene, and social welfare for local residents. Special attention will be paid to taking greater measures to reduce the number of drug and robbery-related crimes, and traffic accidents.
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| Municipal Party Committee Secretary Nguyen Xuan Anh with 2 children suffering from chronic renal failure |
3 Re-establishment of People’s Councils at district and ward levels
After the elections on 22 May for the 14th National Assembly (NA) and the all-level PCls of the 2016 - 2021 nationwide, the district and ward-level People's Councils were re-established in the city. The intention is to facilitate local residents from all walks of life to reflect their aspirations and give their complaints to the local authorities for timely handling.
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| Municipal Party Committee Deputy Secretary Vo Cong Tri (left) participating in the elections for the 14th NA and all-level PCls of the 2016 - 2021 in Hai Chau District’s Hai Chau 2 Ward |
4 Birth certificates and related papers delivered to babies' homes
Starting in early October, birth certificates, health insurance cards and residence papers for newborn babies have been delivered directly to their homes on a trial basis.
The service is applied for local newborn babies whose births are registered by their relatives within 60 days, in accordance with Viet Nam’s laws on civil status.
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| Municipal People’s Committee Chairman Huynh Duc Tho (left) presenting a newborn baby’s documents to the family of Mr Phuong Kha Di from Cam Le District’s Hoa Tho Tay Ward |
5 Tax collection exceeds target by 22%
The city’s total tax collections hit 18,227 billion VND, exceeding this year's target by 22.3%. Of this, the domestic collection reached 14,977 billion VND, including 2,000 billion VND in land-use fees, which exceeded the year’s estimate by 17.9%.
These positive results are mainly attributed to the significant increase in beer consumption tax, a boom in mergers and acquisitions (M&As) transactions, and the effective anti-tax loss plans in the local hospitality sector.
By the end of this year, the city’s gross domestic product rose by 9.04% against last year, whilst its total export turnover of goods reached 1.3 billion USD. The local production value went up by 9.2% year-on-year to hit 47,366 billion VND. The industrial and agricultural production values increased by 11.3% and 3.6% respectively.
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| A local FDI business |
6 Da Nang business incubators centre opens
The Da Nang Entrepreneurship Support Company Ltd (DNES) officially opened its centre in January. The new centre operates under the name of the Da Nang Start-up Support and Investment Company Ltd and it has an initial charter capital of around 30 billion VND.
DNES is the first of its kind in Viet Nam, and operates under the public-private partnership (PPP) format. The centre offers consultancy services and a creative and dynamic working environment for local young start-up businesspeople. In addition, it plays a vital role in appealing for domestic and foreign businesses to invest into highly feasible start-up projects.
After nearly one year of operation, DNES has organised 2 training courses for a total of 16 start-up business project developers in IT, services, tourism, agriculture, education, and food processing. Amongst them, the 8 projects participating in the first course have shown positive results in perfecting their products.
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| Invited guests at the opening ceremony of the Da Nang Entrepreneurship Support Company Ltd |
7 Asia's largest and most spacious cruise ship starts visits to city
Genting Dream, a cruise ship of the Hong Kong-based luxury cruise line Dream Cruises, and carrying 2,300 international passengers, berthed at Da Nang’s Tien Sa Port for the first time on 10 November.
The 19-deck Genting Dream is able to accommodate 3,400 cruise passengers and 2,000 crew members, and it now visits the city every Tuesday.
In 2016, Da Nang welcomed a total of 58 cruise ships with a total of 81,271 foreign visitors on board, a 3.6-fold increase against last year.
In total, the city received 5.51 million visitors from both home and abroad, up 17.7% against 2015 and exceeding the year’s target by 7.2%. 1.66 million were foreigners, up 31.6%, whilst the number of domestic travellers increased by 12.5%. This helped the city’s tourism sector earn 16,000 billion VND in revenue, an increase of 24.7% against last year and exceeding the year’s target by 7.1%.
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| Visitors from the Genting Dream cruise ship arriving at Tien Sa Port |
8 Construction of local key works completed
Construction of the new Hoa Xuan Stadium was completed in August. The 20,000-seater stadium features a 5-tier A stand with single-tier B, C and D stands. In addition, there are drinking, eating and toilet areas, plus other rooms. The new stadium’s playing surface is planted with US Princess 77 Bermuda grass, and it includes a fish-bone-shaped underground drainage system and an automatic watering system. Like the Pleiku Stadium in Gia Lai Province, the stadium is only designated for football.
After over a year of construction, the around 250 billion VND Children’s Cultural Palace has now been put into operation. Covering an area of over 33,000m2 on 2 September street, near the Asia Park, the 3-storey Palace features multifunctional and entertainment areas, study rooms, a library, a meeting hall, and other areas.
A focus for 2017 will be to accelerate the construction of many other key projects in the city to ensure their on-schedule progress. Included are the new international terminal at Da Nang International Airport, infrastructure developments in Hi-tech Park, a link road between Hoa Vang District's Hoa Phuoc and Hoa Khuong communes, the extension to Nguyen Tat Thanh street, Phu Loc wastewater treatment plant, the new cardiovascular centre at Da Nang General Hospital, the Hoang Sa Exhibition House, the Da Nang International Hospital, and the road tunnel for the Tran Phu-Le Duan intersection.
In addition, work has recently started on many other key projects, including the Athlete Training Centre at the Hoa Xuan Sports and Physical Training Complex, and the road tunnel at the intersection of Dien Bien Phu and Nguyen Tri Phuong.
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| Children’s Cultural Palace |
9 Many international events held
Da Nang has emerged as an attractive destination for international events and festivals and in fact was voted Asia’s Leading Festival and Event Destination 2016 at the World Travel Awards.
The city was an official sponsor and host port for the 2015 - 2016 Clipper Round the World Race. It was the first locality in Southeast Asia to participate in the race with its team named ‘Da Nang-Viet Nam’. The Clipper Race fleet were in Da Nang for 10 days during February.
The 5th Asian Beach Games (ABG5) took place in the city from 24 September to 3 October. The event attracted 3,100 athletes, along with 1,500 coaches and officials from 42 teams across Asian countries and territories. In addition, over 1,400 international and domestic referees, supervisors and technical experts, along with 2,200 volunteers, and 600 from media agencies from both home and abroad, served the event.
The 2016 Da Nang International Marathon took place in the city in August. This year’s event attracted around 4,000 professional and amateur runners from 35 countries. Specifically, 402 runners competed in the 42 km full marathon, 556 in the 21 km half-marathon, 325 in the 10 km race, and the remainder were in the 5 km run and walk.
The city also hosted the 3rd Cocobay Da Nang Barefoot Run at the Naman Retreat Beach Resort in August, attracting 5,000 professional and amateur runners.
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| Da Nang leaders with members of the ‘Da Nang-Viet Nam’ Clipper Race team |
10 Relocation of Da Nang Museum approved
Approval has been given by the Da Nang Party Committee’s Executive Board for the Museum of Da Nang to be relocated in 2018 to the current headquarters of the municipal People’s Council at 42 Bach Dang.
The moving of the museum out of the Dien Hai Citadel site is a bold decision for the local leaders. It shows their special concern for local cultural heritage. The construction of the museum, which incorporated the reconstructed walls of the Citadel, has harmed the historical relic contrary to national heritage law. In addition, this will help to promote a wider introduction of the city’s historical documents and artifacts to the public.
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| Primary school pupils visiting Dien Hai Citadel |