More than 400 key staff members of South Korean firms in Vietnam who are expected to enter the country by late this month will be quarantined in the northern province of Quang Ninh.

Van Don International Airport in the northern province of Quang Ninh on March 18 welcomed a flight carrying a total of 43 Vietnamese nationals from Indonesia.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has approved Van Don District in the northern province of Quang Ninh as a multisectoral sea economic zone and entertainment hub that will include a casino.

The privately-owned business community in Vietnam has made great strides with investment expansion, which has contributed to improvements in the domestic business climate throughout the past year.

Van Don district was among the country’s would-be three special economic zones (SEZs) in a controversial draft law on SEZs that was withdrawn last year.

Vietnam has boosted its marine economic development, with Hai Phong city and Quang Ninh province expected to become marine economic hubs by 2030.

Real estate transactions in Van Don and Bac Van Phong, reserved to become SEZs in the future, have become frozen. 

Experts have affirmed that the real estate market in Van Don, Phu Quoc and Bac Van Phong will not be influenced by the National Assembly’s decision on delaying the adoption of the draft law on special economic zones (SEZs). 

VietNamNet Bridge - The three special economic zones (SEZs) are on the horizon as Vietnam is setting a legal framework, preparing for the establishment of the zones.

Phu Quoc, Van Don and Bac Van Phong, in order to develop into powerful SEZs, need to have an outstanding business environment and new institutional policies, experts say.

Experts have voiced concern about the huge amount of capital, VND1,570 trillion, needed to develop three special economic zones (SEZs), saying this will put a heavy burden on the economy.

VietNamNet Bridge - It is expected that by 2020, coastal economic zones (EZs) will play a decisive role in developing the marine economy of Vietnam, making up 53-55 percent of GDP.

VietNamNet Bridge - Van Don, Bac Van Phong and Phu Quoc - three special economic zones (SEZs) – are new destinations for large real estate developers. 

An international airport, seaport system, road traffic and good infrastructure are attracting investment in Phu Quoc. Hundreds of trillion of dong have been poured into the island which will be an SEZ (specialized economic zone) in the near future.

All three special economic zones (SEZs) Vietnam plans to set up – Phu Quoc, Bac Van Phong and Van Don – will give priority to services, tourism and integrated entertainment with casinos. 

Though experts all agree that SEZs must be run with ‘special political institutions and outstanding policies’, they dare not ‘make a breakthrough’ and design regulations which go beyond the current legal framework.

VietNamNet Bridge - Most special economic zones (SEZs) around the world have to experience at least one decade before gaining success.

Visitors to Van Don will be impressed by the animation in the locality: convoys of trucks laden with building materials, machines and equipment head toward major construction sites. 

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc said a special legal framework with outstanding preferences is needed to develop three special economic zones (SEZs) — Van Don in Quang NInh, Bac Van Phong in Khanh Hoa and Phu Quoc in Kien Giang.