Two major transportation projects are set to open in mid-August 2025: the road linking the western provincial highway to the Phu My coastal area, and the southern bypass of the old Phu Phong township.
The projects, with a combined investment of over VND 1,600 billion (approx. USD 68 million), aim to complete the East-West transport infrastructure, integrate with Phu My Industrial Park, and stimulate the coastal economy through trade, logistics, and tourism.
By the end of 2025, Gia Lai plans to complete six additional key transport routes, totaling an investment of VND 5,000 billion (approx. USD 212 million).
Major upcoming projects include the second runway at Phu Cat Airport, a road connecting the North-South Expressway to Phu My Industrial Park and Port, the link between National Highway 1 and De Gi Port via DT 639, and the road connecting Quy Hoa Science and Education Urban Area to Long Van Urban Area.
The projects aim to attract investment, promote industry, services, tourism, and high-tech agriculture, and foster comprehensive socio-economic growth. Additionally, they are intended to reinforce national defense and security, underscoring the strategic role of transport infrastructure in Vietnam’s broader development agenda.
At the first meeting of the Gia Lai Provincial Steering Committee for National Key Projects in August 2025, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee Ho Quoc Dung, who also serves as Head of the Steering Committee, highlighted that these projects are expected to unlock new development spaces and strengthen regional connectivity between Gia Lai, the central coastal provinces, the Central Highlands, and the wider country.
Provincial authorities are also collaborating with central ministries to implement the Quy Nhon-Pleiku expressway, which will serve as the backbone of the East-West corridor, creating a modern, uninterrupted route from Pleiku to the coast. Once completed, travel time to Quy Nhon Port will be reduced to just over two hours.
Gia Lai’s multimodal transport system, including the Le Thanh International Border Gate, Quy Nhon Port, North-South railway, and Phu Cat and Pleiku airports, facilitates a closed-loop value chain for exports and regional trade.
Quy Nhon Port can now accommodate fully loaded 50,000 DWT container ships and partially loaded 70,000 DWT vessels, strengthening the province’s role as the main export gateway for the Central Highlands.
The East-West corridor and the North-South axis via National Highways 14 and 25 are opening up new opportunities in high-tech agriculture, eco-tourism, and cultural industries, creating integrated economic zones that link raw material areas to processing, distribution, and export networks.
Investors are already capitalizing on the improved connectivity. Hung Khanh Agricultural Products JSC has invested VND 300 billion (approx. USD 12.7 million) in a coffee processing plant in Chu Se district, citing the province’s complete transport infrastructure and industrial development plans along the East-West corridor as key factors in their decision.
Economists and local officials highlight that while infrastructure is critical, the province must also focus on human resources, talent retention, and entrepreneurship to fully realize its economic potential.