As a result, total foreign investment to date in the two parks has increased to 710 million USD, or 78 percent more than the corresponding period last year.

Industrial zones in the city have so far attracted over 1.5 billion USD in 166 projects, including 47 foreign investment projects, providing jobs for 33,000 local workers.

These projects have yielded 238 million USD in revenue so far this year, earning 51 million USD from exports and 187 million USD from domestic sales. They have paid a total of 2.3 million USD in taxes.

These achievements were partially attributed to the city’s radical administrative reforms. Currently, investors have to wait just 2 to 7 days to receive their licences, as opposed to up to 30 days in the past.

Other stimuli for investors included attractive land lease and income tax rates.

Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) and Build-Transfer-Operate (BTO) projects enjoy exemptions or reductions in land lease and land use charges, as well as reduced corporate income tax rates for between 8 and 15 years.