City crucial to Mekong growth   Businesses owners in HCM City access market information using an online portal. Firms have been urged to improve trade links between the Cuu Long Delta and the City. - VNA/VNS Photo Hoang Hai VINH LONG (VNS)- Leaders of HCM City and the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta region called for further co-operation between their businesses at the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta Economic Co-operation Forum held yesterday in Vinh Long Province. Since 2001, HCM City has invested in 23 industrial parks and export processing zones and 1,001 projects in 13 provinces and cities in the Delta region. Most of the projects are in the fields of agriculture, aquaculture, transport infrastructure, urban areas, trade and tourism. According to the Southwestern Steering Committee, total registered capital of HCM City's enterprises in the Delta is VND264 trillion (US$12.57 billion). The coastal province of Kien Giang attracted the highest number of investment projects from HCM City, with 115 projects and registered capital of more than VND117 trillion ($5.57 billion). Long An Province ranked second, with 628 projects with more than VND88 trillion ($4.19 billion). After Kien Giang and Long An, An Giang received 54 projects from HCM City; Tien Giang, 44; Can Tho, 34; Ben Tre, 29; Vinh Long, 20; Bac Lieu, 19; and Tra Vinh, nine, according to the HCM City People's Committee. Nguyen Phong Quang, deputy chairman of Southwestern Steering Committee, said that the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta had also contributed human resources and raw materials to HCM City's development. "Co-operation between HCM City and the Delta has deepened, producing satisfactory results in fields including agriculture and fishery," Quang said. HCM City, the country's gateway to several countries, is a market for Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta's goods, Quang said. Le Hoang Quan, chairman of the HCM City People's Committee, who attended the meeting with Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta provinces' leaders, said that co-operation between the city and Delta was essential for both. He cited the case of HCM City's Saigon Coop which has opened branches in 13 provinces and cities of the delta. The company purchases many goods produced in the Delta. Nguyen Hoang Minh, deputy director of HCM City's Department of Planning and Investment, said HCM City wanted to expand co-operation and establish full linkages with the delta. Transport links Speaking at the forum, Nguyen Van The, Deputy Minister of Transport, said with better linkages between the big market of HCM City and the Delta, living conditions of residents in the southern region would improve. The said he was optimistic and cited improved transport, including the HCM City – Trung Luong Freeway, which has shortened the distance between HCM City and Tien Giang Province. "The construction projects for the Trung Luong – Can Tho Freeway and the railway from HCM City to Can Tho is under research. Several investors from the US and Spain are interested in investing in the HCM City – Can Tho Railway," The said. "With the transport system, food produced in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta will be transported to HCM City quickly," he pointed out. He added that the Vam Cong Bridge over Hau (Rear) River, which is under construction, and the Cao Lanh Bridge over Tien (Front) River, which is still in the planning stage, would also created a faster route between the Delta and HCM City. - VNS