The Gia Lai People’s Committee approved and signed investment commitments totalling VND838 trillion, equivalent to approximately US$32 billion, across 273 projects at its 2026 Investment Promotion Conference on March 28, the largest investment mobilisation event held by the province since its administrative merger with Binh Dinh in mid-2025. The outcome positions the newly enlarged Central Highlands province as one of Vietnam’s most active investment destinations, drawing capital from major domestic conglomerates including Vingroup’s VinEnergo Energy and FLC Group across priority sectors including renewable energy, manufacturing, high-tech agriculture, logistics, and urban development.
Key Facts At A Glance
- 273 projects approved or covered by MOU at the March 28, 2026 conference in Quy Nhon ward, Gia Lai province
- 144 projects received formal investment policy approvals, with registered capital exceeding VND230 trillion (approx. US$8.73 billion)
- 129 projects covered by memoranda of understanding, with pledged capital exceeding VND606 trillion (approx. US$23 billion)
- VinEnergo Energy committed to renewable energy projects worth approximately VND210 trillion (US$7.97 billion) under MOU
- FLC Group pledged approximately VND150 trillion (US$5.7 billion) for an integrated complex including airport expansion, logistics, tourism, and urban development
- Province average GRDP growth rate: 6.71% annually from 2021 to 2025; per capita GRDP at approximately US$3,555
- Province area: over 21,500 square kilometres; population: approximately 3.5 million following merger with Binh Dinh in June 2025
A Province Transformed By Administrative Merger
The March 28 conference was the first major investment mobilisation event held by Gia Lai province since it was formed through the merger of the former Gia Lai and Binh Dinh provinces in June 2025, under Vietnam’s national programme to consolidate provincial-level administrative units from 63 to 34. The merger created one of Vietnam’s largest provinces by landmass, combining the Central Highlands of former Gia Lai, including its basalt plateaus, forests, and renewable energy resources, with Binh Dinh’s deep-water port at Quy Nhon and a coastline extending approximately 130 kilometres along the South Central coast.
The configuration gives the province a geographically strategic position along both East-West and North-South connectivity axes, linking the South Central coast to the Central Highlands and providing a natural land corridor to southern Laos and northeastern Cambodia via the Le Thanh international border gate. The Quy Nhon-Pleiku expressway, under active development, is the central infrastructure spine connecting the two former provinces and is expected to anchor the logistics and trade growth strategy underpinning the investment pipeline approved at the conference.
Provincial People’s Committee Chairman Pham Anh Tuan, who chaired the conference, told the approximately 1,000 delegates in attendance that all provincial policies were oriented around transparency, stability, and genuine competitiveness, operating on the principle that business success constitutes provincial success.
Sector Breakdown: Energy And Manufacturing Lead Approved Commitments
Among the 144 projects that received formal investment policy approvals, renewable energy was the dominant sector. VinEnergo Energy Joint Stock Company, the energy arm of Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup, received approval for the Hon Trau wind power plant phase 1 and the Vinh Thuan wind farm, with combined investment capital exceeding VND53 trillion (approximately US$2 billion). Saigon-Bac Giang Industrial Park Corporation received approval for the Van Canh 1 and Van Canh 2 wind farms valued at nearly VND14.68 trillion (US$557 million).
Urban and tourism-linked real estate projects also featured prominently in the approved category. The VND22 trillion Phu Hoa sport-culture, tourism and urban complex, backed by a consortium including Geleximco, Glexhomes, Phuc Loc, and Cienco 8, received in-principle approval, alongside a VND4.8 trillion coastal urban area and service project by Lac Viet Palmer Johnson Coastal Urban and Superyacht JSC.
Under the MOU tier, VinEnergo alone accounted for approximately VND210 trillion in pledged renewable energy commitments across a wider portfolio of offshore and onshore projects. FLC Group, a Vietnamese conglomerate with diversified hospitality, aviation, and real estate interests, pledged approximately VND150 trillion for an integrated development complex incorporating airport expansion, logistics, tourism, and urban development elements in the province.
National Context: Deputy Prime Minister Sets Investment Quality Standard
Deputy Prime Minister Ho Quoc Dung, who addressed the conference, framed the investment approvals within a national directive requiring that new capital flows prioritise advanced technology, environmental sustainability, high value-added outcomes, and strong spillover effects into local supply chains. He specifically articulated a “three no’s” principle for investment selection: no projects that sacrifice the environment for growth; no acceptance of labour-intensive projects using cheap, outdated technology; and no selection of investors lacking technological, management, or financial capability.
The directive reflects a broader shift in Vietnam’s investment attraction posture, moving from volume-based FDI promotion toward selectivity and quality, particularly as the country works to anchor its position further up regional manufacturing value chains in the context of ongoing supply chain diversification by multinational corporations from higher-cost jurisdictions.
Provincial Growth Targets And Structural Ambitions
Gia Lai’s average GRDP growth rate from 2021 to 2025 was 6.71% annually, outperforming the national average of approximately 6.2% over the same period. Total provincial economic output reached approximately VND271,000 billion. The province has set a target of 10% to 10.5% annual GRDP growth through 2030, aiming to achieve moderately developed province status.
The 2026-2030 development plan identifies five growth pillars: processing industries and energy combined with high technology; tourism; high-tech agriculture; logistics; and sustainable urban development. The province has also articulated ambitions to develop capabilities in semiconductors and artificial intelligence, with a goal for the digital economy to account for 25% to 30% of GRDP by 2030.
A proposed data centre project by Q Digital Co., Ltd., valued at approximately US$500 million, is also under discussion following a March 27 meeting between Q Digital General Director Robinson Joshua David and Chairman Pham Anh Tuan, with a proposed site at Nhon Hoi Industrial Park. That project has not yet received formal approval.