New vitality in Co To Special Economic Zone

From a remote island with many difficulties, today Co To special economic zone has risen to change strongly. With the determination of the government and the consensus of the people, the pearl island has put on a new, modern, green and vibrant appearance; traffic infrastructure, electricity grid, schools, and medical stations have been invested synchronously; marine economy and eco-tourism have made a breakthrough, and people's lives have increasingly improved.

Co To Special Economic Zone aims to become a tourism - service center associated with a modern marine economy .

Co To Special Zone was established on the basis of 3 communes and towns of the former Co To district, with a land area of ​​over 53.6 km², including 74 large and small islands, and a population of nearly 7,000 people. It has a sea border of nearly 192 km adjacent to China, owns a fishing ground of over 300 km², has great potential for developing marine economy, eco-tourism and holds a particularly important strategic position in terms of national defense and security in the Northeast sea of ​​the Fatherland. In recent years, Co To has strongly promoted its internal strength, synchronously deployed many solutions to promote rapid and sustainable socio-economic development, improve people's lives and maintain the national defense and security posture.

A special highlight is Dao Tran village, 45 nautical miles from the center of the special zone, where 13 households with 55 people have lived since 2014 under the policy of the Quang Ninh Provincial Party Committee. Up to now, the households have stabilized their lives and have long-term attachment to the island. Essential infrastructure such as transportation, electricity, clean water, schools, and communications have been invested synchronously, creating favorable conditions for people to stay on the island and develop the economy. The special zone government has always promptly implemented many support policies such as preferential loans, gifts, and incentives on holidays and Tet, contributing to motivating people to settle down, stay at sea, and protect sovereignty .

Mr. Vu Van Dinh, Party Cell Secretary and Head of Dao Tran Village, shared: “Despite difficult travel conditions, the people always receive attention and practical support from the province and the special zone. Thanks to that, life is increasingly stable, children can fully study, and people feel secure in their long-term attachment to the island.”

In the period of 2020-2025, Co To focuses on sustainable development based on the strengths of services and tourism. A series of resolutions, projects and programs have been issued and implemented, creating strong development in infrastructure, expanding tourism space, and diversifying products. Accommodation facilities and tourism services have increased rapidly in both quantity and quality; many cultural and tourism events have been successfully organized, raising the brand of sea and island tourism. Thanks to that, in the past term, Co To welcomed about 1.2 million visitors, 1.5 times higher than the previous period; tourism revenue is estimated at 3,000 billion VND, an increase of nearly 1.8 times compared to the period of 2015-2020. This is an important foundation for Co To to continue to affirm its position as a "pearl island" with great potential, both developing the economy and maintaining the sacred sovereignty of the sea and islands of the Fatherland.

The people of Dao Tran village actively cultivate and exploit aquatic products, contributing to economic development and maintaining life on the outpost island.

Along with tourism development, Co To focuses on restructuring agricultural and rural production, taking new rural construction as the center, associated with the community tourism model. The locality has maximized its advantages to promote seafood processing, develop typical products, and at the same time build a marine farming project to improve the efficiency of management, conservation and exploitation of the potential of the sea and islands. Thanks to that, the output of aquaculture and seafood exploitation reached 6,100 tons/year; the output of deeply processed seafood reached 200 tons; the total food output reached 680 tons/year.

With the development perspective of "internal strength is decisive, external strength is a breakthrough", Co To has persistently innovated the growth model, aiming for a green economy and improving labor productivity. As a result, in the period of 2020-2025, the local economy achieved an average growth rate of 16.03%/year, higher than the provincial average; budget revenue increased by an average of 10%/year. The economic structure shifted in the right direction, with trade - services accounting for 65%, industry - construction 20% and agriculture 15%.

Entering a new development phase, Co To special economic zone aims to vigorously implement solutions to build a green, modern and sustainable marine economy. The focus is on developing marine ecotourism and cultural tourism associated with the conservation and promotion of marine resources; encouraging circular economic models, renewable energy, high-tech marine farming and marine logistics services. At the same time, Co To focuses on implementing effective marine spatial planning, associated with protecting the ecological environment and proactively responding to climate change. The goal is that by 2030, Co To will become a tourism - service center associated with a modern marine economy, a model of a marine special economic zone in digital transformation, and at the same time a solid "fence" in the Northeast of the Fatherland.

Minh Duc

Source: https://baoquangninh.vn/dac-khu-co-to-khat-vong-trong-ky-nguyen-moi-3376102.html