Gia Lai is simultaneously revising its provincial master plan and the master plans for four major urban centers as it seeks to create a more interconnected development network spanning coastal, highland and border areas.
The four urban centers, expanded Quy Nhơn, Pleiku, Hoài Nhơn and An Khê, are being planned alongside subzone, functional-area and strategic infrastructure plans.
The approach is intended to align urban development with infrastructure, population, production and services following the province’s merger.
Gia Lai now stretches from the Central Highlands and border areas to the coastal plains, with a 134-kilometer coastline and a 90.3-kilometer border with Cambodia.
The revised provincial master plan adopts the model of “Three Dynamic Corridor Axes - Two Economic Zones - Three Dynamic Areas - Four Functional Subregions.”
Under the framework, expanded Quy Nhơn is identified as the coastal growth hub, expanded Pleiku as the western center, expanded Hoài Nhơn as the northeastern growth pole, and expanded An Khê as an east-west transit link.
Nguyễn Trường Sơn, Director of the Department of Construction, said the simultaneous planning process reflects fundamental changes in Gia Lai’s development space after the merger.
“This marks a shift from managing administrative boundaries to creating development spaces”, Sơn said.
The approach is particularly evident in the Quy Nhơn-Pleiku urban region. Quy Nhơn is positioned as the administrative center and a hub for the maritime economy, seaport logistics and international relations, while Pleiku is planned as a Central Highlands center focused on integrated services, processing industries and highland logistics.
The two cities are linked by the strategic Quy Nhơn-An Khê-Pleiku-Lệ Thanh corridor, connecting seaports, airports, expressways, National Highway 19, agricultural production areas in the Central Highlands and an international border gate.
The provincial planning framework is also being used to define the expansion and development orientations of individual cities.
According to Sơn, urban expansion areas are determined by assessing each city’s role within the provincial urban system, growth corridors and poles, natural conditions, population, existing infrastructure and long-term development needs.
By 2030, the planned urban areas are expected to reach about 1,193 square kilometers for Quy Nhơn, 1,261 square kilometers for Pleiku, 420 square kilometers for Hoài Nhơn and 130 square kilometers for An Khê.
Quy Nhơn and Pleiku are being studied on a particularly large scale because they are considered the two main poles of the new development structure. Quy Nhơn represents the coastal, international-integration, seaport and service-oriented pole, while Pleiku is positioned as an ecological highland center for processing industries, logistics and regional services.
Sơn stressed that a larger administrative area does not mean the entire area will be urbanized. The expansion is intended to provide sufficient economic space for new growth drivers rather than simply accommodate urban expansion.
In Quy Nhơn, Nguyễn Đức Toàn, chairman of the Quy Nhơn Ward People’s Committee, said the locality would follow the provincial and Quy Nhơn urban master plans while reviewing spatial arrangements and preparing land and infrastructure for commerce, services, tourism, logistics and the maritime economy.
The locality also plans to address constraints involving transport, technical infrastructure, site clearance and administrative procedures.
In Pleiku, the development orientation is toward a multi-centered urban model, with infrastructure and land prepared for logistics, processing industries, high-tech agriculture, services and tourism. The city also aims to strengthen links between raw-material areas, processing facilities and markets.
In An Khê, Đặng Quốc Hoài Huy, chairman of the An Khê Ward People’s Committee, said planning would focus on developing new areas along the Ba River and connecting its two banks.
The locality also plans to prepare space and infrastructure for agro-forestry processing, logistics and services, while leveraging the Tây Sơn Thượng Đạo historical complex to develop tourism and strengthen its role as a northeastern growth pole.
Dr. Trần Du Lịch, a member of the National Financial and Monetary Policy Advisory Council, said the Quy Nhơn-Pleiku-Lệ Thanh corridor could support the development of a dry-port system, potentially helping reduce logistics costs for the western region and channel goods through Quy Nhơn and Phù Mỹ ports.
For high-tech agriculture and livestock development, Lịch emphasized a division of responsibilities between the state and the market. He said the state should focus on transport connectivity, electricity, digital infrastructure and renewable energy, while the market drives other areas of development.
Lịch also warned that expanding urban boundaries would not automatically produce better development. Unplanned “oil slick” urbanization, in which housing gradually encroaches on agricultural land, could undermine the quality of urban growth.
Expanded urban areas, he said, should preserve space for parks, green areas and public facilities.
Sơn said the biggest management challenge is turning the province’s new administrative space into a unified development space.
This will require standardized data, reviews of existing plans to determine what should be retained or adjusted, coordinated transport infrastructure, solutions to bottlenecks along strategic corridors and clear priorities for allocating resources to prevent fragmented investment.
The four urban master plans are targeted for completion in the fourth quarter of 2026. Sơn said the tight timeline should not come at the expense of research quality, as the approved plans are expected to guide investment and development over the next 10 to 20 years.
The simultaneous revision of the provincial master plan and the four urban plans marks a move away from planning cities separately toward building a network of interconnected urban centers with complementary roles.
A coordinated planning framework from the provincial to urban level is expected to give investors a clearer picture of potential development locations, help direct infrastructure investment and create a more systematically planned living environment.
According to Lịch, this approach could provide a foundation for Gia Lai to enter a new phase of development with stronger competitiveness and regional connectivity.