According to Decision 861/QD-TTG dated June 4, 2021 of the Prime Minister, Quang Ninh has 56 communes and towns in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, with 162,531 people, accounting for 11.45 million people of the province's population, who live in over 85% of the province's area, where has a key position in terms of national defense - security and national borders.

However, most of the poor households of Quang Ninh province live in mountainous, border and island areas.

Therefore, in recent years and especially in 2023, Quang Ninh province has devoted many resources to concretize the goals set by Resolution 06-NQ/TU (dated May 17, 2021) of the Provincial Party Committee and the overall Socio-Economic Development Program associated with firmly ensuring national defense and security in communes, villages and hamlets in the ethnic minority, mountainous, border and island areas. In particular, the province has been focusing on developing socio-economic infrastructure in ethnic minority, mountainous and border areas, creating an important driving force to reduce the gap between regions, between the rich and the poor and improve the living standards of people.

Synchronous investment in transportation systems connecting regions and inter-regions

On September 1, 2023, to celebrate the National Day (September 2) and the 60th anniversary of the province's establishment (October 30), Quang Ninh inaugurated the upgraded provincial roads 341 (National Highway 18C) from Mong Cai Border Gate Economic Zone to Bac Phong Sinh Border Gate Economic Zone.

Provincial Road 341, after being renovated and upgraded, becomes an important route, connecting mountainous and border communes of Quang Ninh, passing through highland communes of Mong Cai city and Hai Ha district. Thanks to this road, it takes only about 30 minutes to travel from Hai Son to the center of Mong Cai city, and only about 2 hours to Ha Long City.

According to Mr. Cao Tuong Huy - Acting Chairman of Quang Ninh Provincial People's Committee, this road has helped promote trade in goods, attract investment, and eliminate hunger and reduce poverty for ethnic minority and mountainous area, contributing to the rapid and strong development of the two border gate economic zones of Mong Cai and Bac Phong Sinh.

Provincial Road 341 is one of 11 projects invested in by the provincial budget with a total cost of over 16,612 billion VND; along with 38 projects (with investment capital of over 8,375 billion VND) from the local budget, with regional and inter-regional linkage value, creating a close connection between the inland and border, islands, and mountainous areas, rural with urban, lowlands in Quang Ninh.

There are many other transportation projects implemented in Quang Ninh in 2023, which have value in connecting dynamic areas with difficult areas in the province and with border gates such as the road connecting the center of Dai Duc commune to the center of Dai Thanh commune in Tien Yen district; the road from the center of Dam Ha district to Quang An commune (Dam Ha district); the road connecting National Highway 18 to the center of Quang Son commune (Hai Ha district)... or key projects helping complete inter-regional transport infrastructure such as the Cua Luc 3 bridge; the project to renovate and upgrade provincial road 342, the riverside road connecting Ha Long - Hai Phong to Dong Trieu town.

Completing the national grid throughout the province

On September 2, 2020, the People's Committee of Quang Ninh province inaugurated the National Grid Power Supply project for Tran Island of Co To district and Cai Chien island of Hai Ha district (phase 2). This marked Quang Ninh’s completion of the goal of bringing national power grid to 100% of households in the province. The access to the national power grid of remote, border and island areas has contributed to ensuring national defense, security and sovereignty in the Northeast islands of the country, while helping develop Quang Ninh’s tourism economy in the future.

By the end of 2023, Quang Ninh province has 438,670 households using national grid electricity, 210 households using solar power. To meet the quality of electricity for people, the provincial Department of Industry and Trade has coordinated with local agencies to review and make a list of 2,444 households using electricity with low voltage quality and unsafe power grids in 6 localities including Dong Trieu, Ha Long, Tien Yen, Ba Che, Hai Ha, Dam Ha. Accordingly, Quang Ninh Electricity Company has developed a plan to upgrade and renovate the electrical system in 2024.

Prioritizing investment in education and health care in disadvantaged communes

2023 is considered a key year for Quang Ninh to devote investment resources to education in mountainous, borders and island areas. The project to renovate, repair, upgrade and complete the physical facilities of the province's education and training sector for the period 2022-2025 has been approved, which identifies priority for communes named in Resolution No. 06, especially communes that have just left the list of extremely difficult areas in the 2016-2020 period.

Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the province's founding, on September 5, 2023, Quang Ninh inaugurated the Binh Lieu High School (Binh Lieu district). This is one of 12 typical projects selected by Quang Ninh to complete to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the province's founding, in order to concretize Resolution No. 06, thereby, contributing to realizing the goal that by 2025, each district-level locality will have one public school meeting high quality criteria at each level of general education; Each city and town will have a public high school meeting high quality criterion.

Regarding healthcare, the Provincial People's Committee approved the Project to strengthen facilities and equipment to improve the capacity of medical facilities in Quang Ninh province in 2023 (phase 1) with a total cost of 245 billion VND; approved the plan and assign the Department of Health to complete the project to improve the capacity of the preventive and treatment health system; quality of care and protection of people's health in the period 2021-2025.

Developing telecommunications infrastructure, building commune-level cultural and sports houses

By the end of November 2023, Quang Ninh completed construction of 54 telecom stations (reaching 100% of the plan), and covered 66 villages (reaching 100% of the plan) with telecom service network. At the same time, the province deployed telecom infrastructure, ready to provide fixed broadband internet services to 113 villages that are not covered by fiber optic cables (reaching 100% of the plan).

Regarding cultural infrastructure, the People's Committee of Quang Ninh province has assigned localities to build cultural and sports centers in communes that do not have such works, or where these works are downgraded.

Localities have built 4 cultural and sports houses in the communes of Quang Lam, Quang Tan, Tan Binh (Dam Ha district); Dai Duc, Dong Rui, Hai Lang (Tien Yen district); Ky Thuong (Ha Long City); Cai Chien (Hai Ha district). The remaining 10 communes are expected to have cultural and sports houses before 2025.

So far this year, Quang Ninh has directed the implementation of 101 essential infrastructure investment projects funded by the provincial budget, including 20 projects under Resolution No. 06 and 81 projects under the program to build new countryside.