Kien Giang seeks to build more golf courses in Phu Quoc

Authority in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang is looking to build another four golf courses on Phu Quoc Island, one of its main tourist attractions, local media reported on Saturday.

The island is now home to a 99-hectare 27-hole golf course, which was opened over a year ago as part of a tourist complex run by hotels and resorts chain Vinpearl, Tuoi Tre newspaper said.

The provincial authority plans to develop five golf courses with a total area of 820 hectares by 2030, it said.
Under Vietnam’s existing laws, local governments can license golf course projects, but they are still subject to the scrutiny of the central government, which has tightened the control over the development of golf courses in recent years.

Huynh Van Lac, spokesman of Kien Giang People’s Committee, told Tuoi Tre that the provincial authority had proposed the government add the five courses to the national master plan for golf courses development.

In its latest plan in 2014, Vietnamese government restricted the number of golf courses to 96 by 2020.
The government first opposed restrictions on golf courses in 2009 as environmentalists raised concerns about reports that 166 projects were being planned around the country. It then axed the number of golf course projects to 89.

More than 30 golf courses are currently operational across Vietnam, according to local media.