HCMC – Can Tho aims to become a modern international logistics hub by 2035, with cargo throughput at its port system reaching at least 40 million tons annually, according to a logistics development roadmap presented at a conference on June 10.
The target was unveiled at a scientific workshop on developing logistics services in Can Tho as the center of the Mekong Delta region.
Bui Ba Nghiem, a senior specialist at the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Agency of Foreign Trade, said a research team had developed an International Logistics Hub Model (ILHM) based on modern logistics theories and experiences from Singapore, the Netherlands and Germany.
The model comprises eight pillars, including multimodal infrastructure connectivity, logistics capacity and performance, value-added logistics services, digital and green logistics, regional and international linkages, and a supporting logistics ecosystem.
Based on the model, the research team developed an assessment framework comprising 40 component indicators, with five indicators assigned to each pillar, to measure and quantify the level of logistics development in the locality.
The assessment found that Can Tho is currently at Level 3 on a five-tier logistics development scale, corresponding to the status of an “emerging regional logistics center.” “This means Can Tho has moved beyond the stage of a local logistics system, but there remains a considerable gap before it can become an International Logistics Hub Model (ILHM),” Nghiem said.
According to Nghiem, the study also identified five major bottlenecks in Can Tho’s logistics sector: low logistics efficiency coupled with high costs; a lack of value-added logistics services; logistics capacity that has yet to meet development needs; slow progress in the adoption of green logistics practices; and the absence of a shared data platform to support digital logistics.
To narrow the gap with the International Logistics Hub Model (ILHM), Nghiem proposed that Can Tho focus on developing five growth poles by 2030: the Cai Cui Port logistics hub, an international air logistics center, a Mekong Delta agricultural logistics and cold-chain center, a processing industry corridor, and a cross-border Mekong logistics center.
According to Nghiem, prioritizing the development of these growth poles would help the city reach Level 4 on the logistics development scale by 2030, effectively becoming a developed regional logistics center.
To achieve this goal, the city will need to improve logistics performance by reducing logistics costs for agricultural and seafood products, shortening cargo transportation times, and enhancing supply chain efficiency across the Mekong Delta.
In addition, Can Tho should expand value-added logistics services, strengthen logistics capacity, promote green logistics, and accelerate digital transformation in the logistics sector.
