Located in an area of 913ha in District 9, Ho Chi Minh City,  Saigon Hi-Tech Park (SHTP) is one of three national high-tech parks founded by the Government with the aim of  researching, developing and applying high technology, training human resources and producing and trading high-tech products. With a strategic location, the Park has full advantages to become a “technology and science city”.

On an average, the park created an export value of nearly 30 million dollars/ hectare and reached a production value of 150,000 dollars/year.

After 12 years of development, the park has become a trustworthy destination for high-tech investment in Vietnam and has served as the driving force for the city’s development.  According to Le Hoai Quoc, Head of the high-tech  park’s management board, the zone  consists of two phases and has completed the first phase.

Since the first project was put into operation in 2005, 68 licenses have so far been granted to projects with a total investment of more than 4 billion dollars, including 800 million dollars from domestic capital for 35 projects and over 3.3 billion dollars from direct foreign investment for 33 projects. At present, 43 projects are operating in the park with a total production value of nearly 10 billion dollars, including an export volume of 8.7 billion dollars. These projects provide jobs for over 21,000 labourers. In 2014 alone, the park attracted 10 projects with a total investment of about 1.8 billion dollars, including 340 million dollars from domestic capital for 6 projects and 1.5 billion dollars from foreign investment for 4 projects. The total production value has reached nearly 3 billion dollars with more than 2.9 billion dollars of export value.

Part of Saigon High-tech Park. Photo: Nguyen Luan/VNP The sport complex inside the Saigon Hi-tech Park. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP Outside the GENEWORLD Company. Photo: Nguyen Luan/VNP The green space inside the Saigon Hi-tech Park. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP Employees at the Saigon Hi-tech Park R&D Centre have to be in the sterilisation room before working. Photo: Nguyen Luan/VNP Inside a factory of Nidec Group in Saigon Hi-tech Park. Photo: File The production line inside a factory of Intel Group (the US) in Saigon Hi-tech Park. Photo: File

Saigon High-tech Park has contributed to increasing the scientific-technological contents through high-tech products, such as chipset (Intel), DGS - Digital Graphic System, Jabil printer, Datalogic, MK and VTC intelligent cards, Nanogen pharmaceutical products, Nidec Sankyo  digital camera and equipments in the semi-conductor chip sector.

The park also has other advantages such as receiving the strong support of central and local authorities, offering “one-stop-shopping” application service and the highest legitimate tax incentives to investors. Therefore,  it  has been considered a bright point of foreign investment in fields of high technology throughout Vietnam and is proudly the investment destination of projects from global hi-tech corporations, such as Samsung (RoK) with a total investment capital of 1.4 billion dollars, Nidec (Japan) with four projects worth billions of dollars, including a project on producing high-precision compact motors. The Intel Group (the US) invested one billon dollars in building a chip assembly plant - the biggest among its 167 factories built in 63 countries all over the world. In the future, when the Intel group stops its operation in Costa Rica and moves its factories to other countries, including Vietnam, it promises to usher in new opportunities for the zone.

Also, the zone attracted many projects on research and production from Sanofi (France), Datalogic Scanning (Italy), Sonion (Denmark), Microchip (the US) and many domestic enterprises, groups and institutes for research and technology training, such as FPT, Hutech, Oil and Gas Institute, Nanogen Biopharmaceutical Ltd., and  Gene World Ltd.

With a staff of professional and well-qualified employees, the Saigon Hi-tech Park R&D Centre quickly mastered and transferred some important technology  to  enterprises, including the application of carbon nanotubes  to super capacitor and power edition, liquid nano carbon, research to manufacture bio-sensor chips, pressure sensor chips applied in blood pressure monitors and material measuring machines, researching Nano materials used in food, pharmaceutical products and energy reserving; and the breakthroughs in diode technology with an ability for commercial production, such as FRED or JBS rectifiers. 

Activities to develop high-tech human resources have been  implemented through cooperation with universities and prestigious centres domestically and internationally, providing 500 training courses for 7,000 students  at the requirement of high-tech enterprises. In 2013, the training centre coordinated with Microsoft group to establish  the Microsoft  Innovation Centre, opening a prospect process in training high-quality human resources for the information and technology sector.

The Saigon Hi-tech Park R&D Centre trains human resources for high-tech enterprises. Photo: Nguyen Luan/VNP High-tech sensor samples used in measuring technology are produced in the park. Photo: Nguyen Luan/VNP High-tech research products are transferred to enterprises for production. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP Super capacitors applied to electronic spare parts. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP Conducting research to produce high-tech products. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP Carrying out experiments to produce pharmaceutical products for the health sector. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP Conducting experiments to produce hi-tech products. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP  Producing pharmaceutical products for the health sector. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is used to measuring Nano and analysing chemical elements in materials for processing cosmetics. Photo: Dang Kim Phuong/VNP

In 2012, it hosted the 16th  ASPA (Asian Science Park Association) with the participation of more than 100 leading Asian managers and scientists that affirms its position in the Asian Science Park Association.

Towards 2020, SHTP is to be a technopolis playing an important role of strongly enhancing the technological and intellectual base of Ho Chi Minh City and the Focal Economic Region of Southern Vietnam, and serving as Vietnam’s model of technological innovation, intellectual capital development and innovation economy.

The zone is building infrastructure for stage 2 and providing the state’s priorities in terms of land renting, tax reduction and infrastructure.  It gives top incentives to attract enterprises which have high-tech products and adjusts the plan  to spare land for the supply chain of subsidiary industry. (Le Hoai Quoc, Head of Saigon High-tech Park’s management board)

Story: Van Quy
Photos: Dang Kim Phuong, Nguyen Luan & Files

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