Economic Diplomacy Paves the Way for Investment Flows

For many years, Phu Tho has identified economic diplomacy as a key pillar of its external affairs activities. In line with the Party and State’s policy of comprehensive international integration, the province has proactively expanded cooperative relations with foreign localities, organizations and partners, while strengthening coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vietnamese representative agencies abroad and international organizations to promote its image, potential and investment environment.

Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee Tran Duy Dong and the provincial delegation learn about Geely Group during an investment promotion trip to China in April 2026. Photo: Archive

To date, the province has established cooperative relationships with 21 localities across various countries and territories and signed 15 international cooperation agreements in multiple fields. These partnerships have not only enhanced friendship and people-to-people exchanges but have also opened up practical opportunities for cooperation in investment, trade, education, science and technology, and human resource development.

One notable feature of the province’s external relations in recent years has been a strong shift from traditional exchanges and cooperation toward directly serving economic development goals. Provincial delegations have conducted investment promotion missions to the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, India, the United Arab Emirates, Sweden, Spain, Finland and many other countries. At the same time, Phu Tho has regularly welcomed major corporations and enterprises seeking to explore investment opportunities and assess the local business environment.

Since the beginning of 2026, economic diplomacy activities have continued to gain momentum through a series of large-scale investment promotion programs. In April 2026, a provincial delegation led by Chairman Tran Duy Dong visited Shanghai and several other localities in China to promote the province’s investment environment and introduce its potential in industrial development, logistics and infrastructure. During the trip, the delegation met with numerous corporations operating in electronics, equipment manufacturing, supporting industries and high-tech sectors. Many businesses expressed interest in the province’s industrial parks and sought further information on investment opportunities.

Alongside overseas promotion activities, the province has actively connected with domestic and international business communities through investment conferences and forums. At the end of May 2026, the Phu Tho Investment Promotion Conference in Ho Chi Minh City attracted a large number of domestic and foreign investors. At the event, Bui Huy Vinh, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, directly introduced the province’s potential, advantages and development orientation for the coming period, while reaffirming the province’s commitment to creating the most favorable conditions for businesses to invest and operate effectively.

These consistent, well-planned and targeted investment promotion efforts demonstrate the province’s determination to transform international relations into tangible cooperation opportunities and attract high-quality investment capital.

If economic diplomacy opens the door to opportunities, the investment environment is what determines whether investors stay for the long term. Recognizing this, Phu Tho has been accelerating administrative reform, digital transformation and improvements in business support services, with the principle that enterprises are at the center and investors are key beneficiaries of public services.

Various measures have been implemented, including shortening administrative processing times, expanding online public services, enhancing dialogue with businesses and addressing obstacles facing investment projects. Authorities at all levels actively accompany investors from the initial survey and preparation stages through project implementation.

These efforts have yielded positive results. The province currently hosts more than 740 valid FDI projects with total registered capital approaching USD 14 billion from dozens of countries and territories worldwide. In the first five months of 2026 alone, Phu Tho attracted over USD 1.3 billion in foreign direct investment, several times higher than the figure recorded during the same period last year.

FDI inflows continue to focus on high value-added sectors such as electronics, supporting industries, component manufacturing, high technology and processing and manufacturing industries. Investors from South Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan (China), Thailand and many other countries have continued expanding their operations, reflecting confidence in the province’s investment climate.

At the beginning of 2026, a delegation of business leaders representing 12 corporations and enterprises under the Gyeonggi Province Chamber of Commerce and Industry (South Korea) visited Phu Tho to survey industrial parks and explore investment opportunities. This positive signal underscores the province’s growing attractiveness to the international business community.

These achievements are attributable not only to the province’s strategic location, improving transport infrastructure and abundant workforce but also to its success in building the image of a dynamic, responsive and business-friendly locality.

To further enhance the role of economic diplomacy in the new development phase, on June 4, 2026, the Provincial People’s Committee issued Plan No. 216 to implement the Provincial Party Standing Committee’s Action Program for Directive No. 15 of the Party Central Committee Secretariat on economic diplomacy serving national development through 2030.

The plan identifies several key priorities, including expanding partnerships with countries and organizations that possess strengths in high technology, clean energy, the digital economy, logistics and high-tech agriculture; supporting enterprises in integrating more deeply into global value chains; and effectively mobilizing ODA, concessional loans and other international resources for infrastructure, education, healthcare, environmental protection and digital transformation.

Notably, the province also aims to leverage resources from overseas Vietnamese communities by connecting with expatriate experts, intellectuals and entrepreneurs to promote investment, technology transfer and trade facilitation.

The First Congress of the Phu Tho Provincial Party Organization for the 2025–2030 term set the goal of transforming Phu Tho into one of the nation’s and the region’s leading centers for industry, services, logistics and tourism. To achieve this ambition, effectively harnessing external resources through economic diplomacy will continue to play a crucial role.

From overseas investment promotion missions and meetings with multinational corporations to persistent efforts to improve the domestic business environment, Phu Tho is gradually converting international partnerships into tangible development resources.

In today’s era of deep integration, economic diplomacy is no longer solely the responsibility of the foreign affairs sector but has become a shared mission of the entire political system. It is also the pathway through which the Land of the Ancestors continues to expand its development space, strengthen its competitiveness and create new growth drivers for the future.

Quang Nam