Binh Phuoc: A New Player in Vietnam’s Dynamic Economic Region of the South

Abstract

Binh Phuoc is one of Vietnam’s newest provinces. Less than 100 kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), it is reasonably accessible by car. John Schmidt had recently seen a half-page synopsis describing the new province. Reported growth rates hovering around 9% caught his attention, so he decided to visit as many sites there as possible, with hopes to determine if it was a place in which he might want to invest. As his car approached the capital, he peered through the window and was impressed by the attractive new buildings that seemed to have grown out of the lush green landscape. Large, brightly colored government buildings, meeting halls for provincial leaders and a huge new post office were starkly obvious along the freshly expanded road, running down the middle of a town. That town hardly existed just a short time ago. A new capital in a new province was born...