Finding Ideas to “Spread” Development Momentum from Long Thanh Airport

​(News Portal – Dong Nai) - Long Thanh International Airport has been identified as a new growth hub for the province in the future. For this reason, Dong Nai is actively implementing solutions to “spread" the development momentum from Long Thanh Airport to other areas. 

Construction workers working on the passenger terminal of Long Thanh Airport, Phase 1. 

A New Growth Hub
The Long Thanh Airport construction project is a national key project. It is also one of the top 16 most anticipated airport projects in the world, aiming to become one of the region's major international aviation hubs. With this position, Long Thanh Airport is recognized as a significant driving force to boost the economic and social development of the province and the entire country.

Mr. Nguyen Hong Linh, member of the Central Party Committee and Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, has emphasized at various conferences related to Long Thanh Airport that no city with a large-scale international transit airport has ever been poor. Therefore, Dong Nai must plan carefully to seize the development opportunities once Long Thanh Airport is operational.

Mr. Vo Tan Duc, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, stated that after becoming operational, the Long Thanh Airport project could contribute 3-5% to Dong Nai's GDP growth. To capitalize on the project's advantages, the province has implemented several tasks, such as: developing a regional airport plan, building a connected transportation system, and planning a logistics system in the airport area and its surroundings... All aimed at creating momentum for development.

Mr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen, Director of the Department of Planning and Investment, shared that through studying airport development models in countries such as South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, and China, the trend of developing airport cities or planning support zones around airports has become increasingly popular. This model is increasingly being perfected towards multi-functional integration, modernity, and includes urban areas, knowledge-based economic zones, and recreational zones. “Airport cities play a critical role; they are economic growth drivers, promoting integration, enhancing investment attraction, and rapidly developing sectors such as commerce, services, and logistics," said Mr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen.

Searching for Breakthrough Ideas

In the provincial planning period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, Dong Nai has identified Long Thanh Airport as the focal point, the driving force for economic development, and a breakthrough task that contributes to transforming the province's economic model from extensive to intensive growth. This involves gradually shifting from reliance on industrial sectors to trade and service sectors, especially services that support Long Thanh Airport; moving from supporting and mixed industries to focusing on key industries: aviation, semiconductor, chip manufacturing, and artificial intelligence.

According to Mr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen, recognizing the development opportunities from Long Thanh Airport, Dong Nai is focusing on leveraging its proximity to the airport to create development momentum for the province as well as the entire Southeastern region. In this context, the airport city model will be a priority in development planning.

The Department of Construction explained that the Long Thanh Airport city is expected to be planned as a satellite model, where infrastructure, land use structure, and the economy revolve around the airport, taking full advantage of the airport as an economic growth driver. This will be a new driving force for the province's breakthrough development.

With this orientation in mind, planning ideas play a crucial role, helping to shape the future development of Long Thanh Airport city. Therefore, according to Mr. Ho Van Ha, Director of the Department of Construction, the provincial authorities have decided to organize an international competition for “Overall Planning Ideas for Long Thanh Airport City and Its Surrounding Areas" to seek unique, optimal, and feasible planning solutions that align with the conditions and development directions of Long Thanh Airport city.

The area of focus for the overall planning study of Long Thanh Airport city and its surrounding areas includes parts of three districts: Long Thanh, Thong Nhat, and Cam My, covering 17 communes and one town with a total area of over 57,000 hectares.

According to the Department of Construction, the purpose of organizing the international competition for overall planning ideas for Long Thanh Airport city and its surroundings is to pool knowledge from domestic and international consulting units with experience in planning, construction investment, and airport city development and management. The goal is to find ideas that offer a broad vision with high practical applicability, meeting the maximum criteria for architectural planning, landscape, functionality, and aesthetics of a modern, green, and sustainable urban area. It must also align with the “aerotropolis" trend of the era and suit the current conditions and socio-economic development directions of the Southeastern region, Ho Chi Minh City region in general, and Dong Nai province in particular.​

On this basis, the province aims to effectively utilize three resources: land, infrastructure, and people, ensuring synchronization between already-invested projects and newly-attracted investment areas with modern technical systems.