Developing transport infrastructure for trade expansion

With the motto “The people do, the State supports,” from 2021 to 2023, districts and Son La city cemented and asphalted 801 roads spanning 527 kilometers, with a total investment of over 799 billion VND (33.5 million USD), including nearly 648 billion VND from the state budget and 151 billion VND contributed by local residents. Currently, 79 communes meet the transportation criterion in new-style rural area building.

Additionally, the province has repaired and concreted over 164 kilometers of national highways and asphalted 50 kilometers of provincial roads, while addressing eight accident hotspots and 11 others at risk of traffic accidents. The province has allocated and managed funds for the regular maintenance of district and commune roads to facilitate trade and attract investment in agricultural processing.

Currently, the province is accelerating the construction of the road connecting National Highway 37 in Bac Yen district with National Highway 279D in Muong La district, passing through five communes without concrete roads, including Chim Van and Pac Nga in Bac Yen district, and Chieng Cong, Chieng An and Chieng Hoa in Muong La district. This will create a route along the Da River, faciliating trade with Hoa Binh, Yen Bai, and Lai Chau provinces.

Notably, Son La is implementing the Hoa Binh - Moc Chau Expressway project’s section in the province, which expected to be completed by 2028. The Na San Airport project, which has been included in the master plan for national airport system development for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, is currently in the process of selecting consulting units and making detailed planning.

Investing in industrial zones and clusters

According to the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 1676/QD-TTg dated December 25, 2023 approving the provincial master plan for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, the province will have five industrial zones (IZs), including Mai Son and Van Ho by 2030; Yen Chau and Long Sap in Moc Chau district, and Chieng Khuong in Song Ma district by 2050.

Following the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s guidelines, the provincial People’s Committee has directed relevant agencies to focus on promoting and attracting investment into industrial zones in advantageous sectors. Since 2021, the provincial Industrial Zone Authority has received five investment project proposals for the Mai Son IZ, bringing the total number of approved investment projects to seven, with a total registered capital of 923 billion VND (37.53 million USD), representing an occupancy rate of 37%. Among these, three are currently operational, including the BHL Son La Agricultural Processing Plant, the Petrolimex Gas Station, and the Thanh Nhung Wood Processing Plant.

Additionally, the province is directing the building and upgrading roads leading to industrial zones and clusters, including them in the provincial master plan for 2021-2030, with a vision towards 2050, ensuring consistency in implementation. 

Increasing agricultural processing value

Currently, Son La province has 87 markets, one trade center, four supermarkets, three specialized store chains, and 16 WinMart+ convenience stores. The province has integrated two logistics centers in Mai Son and Moc Chau districts, each covering 10 hectares; a 6-hectare agricultural wholesale market in Son La city and another, 10 hectares, in Mai Son district into the master plan. New irrigation projects, such as the 10-million-cu.m Mong irrigation lake and the Chieng Dong irrigation lake with a capacity of 3.9 million cu.m have also been invested.

The province has nine coffee processing facilities, seven traditional tea production units, three high-quality tea production units, two cassava starch processing plants with a capacity of 300 tonnes per day, six vegetable and fruit processing facilities, two dairy processing plants, and one sugar processing plant. The production value of the agricultural processing industry in 2023 reached over 4.96 trillion VND (201.67 million USD), a year-on-year increase of 6.66%; while the value of processed agricultural products for export hit nearly 160 million USD, up 6.42% from 2022.

The province aims for 6.5 trillion VND in the production value of the agricultural processing industry by 2025, with at least nine agricultural processing plants put into operation. Departments, agencies and localities will advise the provincial administration to arrange and allocate investment funds for infrastructure development projects in support of agriculture and agricultural processing, contributing to establishing Son La as the agricultural processing center of the northwestern region.