From August 2023, Hanoi will process the necessary administrative requirements to take over the Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park, which is currently under the Ministry of Science and Technology.

It may take Hanoi authorities about six months to complete the takeover.

The ministry and Hanoi must ensure the proper operation of the high-tech park during and after the transfer, as well as the operation of the companies, government agencies, and employees operating within the park.

Production line at Hanwha Aero Engines in Hoa Lac High-Tech Park. Photo: Thanh Hai/The Hanoi Times

Under the management of Hanoi authorities, Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park will continue to be the hub where enterprises and government agencies work to research, develop and apply core technologies.

The city will improve transportation and infrastructure networks for the park and develop residential areas to make the high-tech park a center of science and technology, culture, and education in the capital.

Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park was inaugurated in mid-October 1998 as the first science and technology development center in Vietnam, along with Ho Chi Minh City High-Tech Park, Danang High-Tech Park, and Dong Nai Biology High-Tech Park.

Of the four high-tech parks, Hoa Lac is the only one administered by the Ministry of Science and Technology, while the other three are under municipal and provincial government authorities.

Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park, covering a total area of nearly 1,600 hectares, is home to 106 investment projects with a total registered capital of VND99 trillion (US$4.2 billion), according to Tran Dac Trung, deputy director of the high-tech park. Of the total area, the park has more than 1,400 hectares waiting for investors.

Sixty of the 106 projects are now active, creating jobs for some 14,500 people. In 2022, the park's enterprises generated revenues of VND18 trillion (US$757.6 million) and paid about VND1.2 trillion (US$50.5 million) to the State budget.

Expectations for better operation

After 25 years of establishment and development, the transfer of Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park from the management of the Ministry of Science and Technology to Hanoi is expected to improve its performance.

A Phenikaa Group facility at Hoa Lac High-Tech Park. Photo: Lam Thanh/The Hanoi Times

The existence of the park has facilitated the development of a wide range of technologies in telecommunications, electronics, software programming, biotechnology and automation. The high-tech park is now home to many research centers, institutions, corporate research units, and universities.

Some global names that have landed in Hoa Lac include the military-run telecommunications group Viettel, members of the FPT technology group FPT Software and FPT University, the Phenikaa Group, South Korea's Hanwha Aerospace, and Japan's Nidec.

However, the development of Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park is below expectations, said Deputy Director Tran Dac Trung, as most of the area in the high-tech park has not been leased.

"All enterprises that set up the high-tech park must ensure that they have a plan for technological research and development (R&D), which is our main purpose," the deputy director said.

"But some companies only want to take advantage of the land for large-scale production while ignoring their investment in R&D activities."

The Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park was designed as a center to develop core technologies that will be applied by research centers and institutions, said Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Bui The Duy.

"It will be a hub for science and technology, focusing on developing high-quality human resources and incubating technological solutions and innovations," Duy added.

Other difficulties include land clearance, which is time-consuming due to cumbersome administrative procedures, poor infrastructure development, and a lack of funding from the State budget, which has forced the high-tech park's management board to call on private investors to join in further developing the area, the deputy minister said.

There is also a gap in the mindset between the high-tech park and investors, Trung said, adding that investors want to develop a common area consisting of all functions to serve their business.

"However, the high-tech park is designed in such a way that the company has to divide its operation into different areas that serve different needs," he added.

Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Bui The Duy expects that Hanoi's acquisition of Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park will solve the existing problems and promote its development in the future.

"When Hanoi fully takes over the management of Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park, we expect the city to further develop the park into a core technology incubator with improved transportation infrastructure and surrounding residential areas," said Deputy Minister Duy.

"Hopefully, Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park will become a center for science and technology, culture, and education and training, thus fostering the socio-economic growth of the capital," he said.