Phu Quoc island has a coastline of some 150 kilometers.

Nguyen Van Hon, deputy director of the unit, said that his agency had decided to nullify these investment plans, adding it was the province’s policy to take a tough stance against inactive projects.

“We are determined to cut down on the number of inactive projects and to welcome active investors for developing such projects,” he said.

Phu Quoc island, nearly an hour’s flying from HCMC, has a coastline of some 150 kilometers. In late 2005, the then Prime Minister Phan Van Khai approved an overall scheme to develop Phu Quoc island into a tourist paradise able to attract 500,000 to 600,000 tourists in 2010 and two to three million guests a year by 2020.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in 2007 also approved a master plan for tourism development on the island. However, the plan is moving slower than expected due to infrastructure bottlenecks.

“The slowness (in realizing the master plan) is attributed to the incomplete infrastructure system. However, the Government has been speeding up the construction process in the past two years,” Hon said.

He said that the island would late this year start work on Duong To 3 Street, one of the main roads on the island, while other big projects like Phu Quoc international airport, seaports, and several other main roads are under construction.

Hon also said casino projects on Phu Quoc island would also be considered upon detailed regulation from the Ministry of Finance on bidding procedures.

“The central Government has asked the ministry to map out criteria for developing a complex of casinos here,” he said.

So far, authorities on the island have given investment certificates to 33 projects with total pledged investment of around VND30.8 trillion, or some US$1.75 billion, and have agreed in principle on more than 170 other projects.

Hon rejected recent media reports that authorities had licensed a US$2-billion project on the island owned by the U.S.-based Limited Investment Zone, explaining that the provincial government was only considering the investment plan after a recent presentation on the project by the potential investor.

VietNamNet/SGT

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