VietNamNet Bridge – Kien Giang Province’s government has agreed in principle to the establishment of a company mandated to develop infrastructure facilities for the tourist island of Phu Quoc, said an official in charge of investment in the district off the southern province.

From now to 2010, Phu Quoc will develop main roads and water and electricity projects among others.

The Phu Quoc Infrastructure Development Investment Joint Stock Company, as the new concern is to be named, will be established by seven founding shareholders being local entrepreneurs in Kien Giang and elsewhere in the country, Hong told the Daily on Monday.

The company, capitalized at VND500 billion, will be in charge infrastructure projects such as roads, water and power supplies, and others.

Hong said the company would only develop essential projects within its financial capacity. However, it can call on other investors to join forces for developing capital-intensive projects there.

The decision is to respond to the need for accelerating infrastructure development on the island that has lagged far behind expectations. Hong said apart from those projects sufficiently financed by the central Government budget, the progress on many others developed by the island district has been lackluster due to capital shortage.

“We need to speed up the development of infrastructure for developing Phu Quoc into a tourist island. The new company will serve our demand,” he said.

The island needs huge funds in the medium term for building its infrastructure.

From now to 2010, Phu Quoc will develop main roads and water and electricity projects among others. From 2010 to 2020, the district will build more roads on the island and prepare works for the new urban town there.

The 561-square-kilometer Phu Quoc Island, nearly an hour’s flying from HCMC, will become a tourist island expected to attract two to three million tourists in 2020.

Phu Quoc with a coastline of some 150 kilometers has so far given investment certificates to 21 projects with total pledged investment of some US$1.72 billion, including two foreign-invested ones.

The island welcomed around 128,000 travelers during the first eight months of this year, up 8.3% year-on-year. Of them, nearly 35,000 are foreigners. The island is expected to earn VND266 billion from tourism revenue in 2008.

(Source: SGT)