HÀ NỘI — The 14th National Party Congress, held in Hà Nội from January 19 to 25, is widely regarded as a landmark event ushering Việt Nam into a new stage of development shaped by renewed economic thinking.

A central focus of the congress is the continued concretisation of Resolution No.68-NQ/TW, reaffirming the Party’s determination to dismantle institutional barriers and create breakthroughs for the private sector, positioning it as the most important driving force of the national economy.

Driving breakthroughs in the private economy

Dr Tô Xuân Thao, Director of the Research Institute for Medium and Small Enterprises, said that after nearly 40 years of reform, the Party and State have clearly recognised the private economy as a central engine of growth.

He emphasised that the private and State-owned sectors should be viewed as two closely linked and inseparable growth poles, even as the private sector’s contribution to socio-economic development continues to expand.

According to Thao, State resources, particularly the role of ministries, sectors, local authorities and the civil service, must be further mobilised. He stressed the need for officials to pioneer innovation and shift the administrative mindset from a mechanism of asking and giving to one that genuinely serves businesses and citizens. 

Reviewing the draft documents of the congress, Thao noted that a major breakthrough lies in affirming the private economy not only as a driving force but also as a solid pillar of an independent and self-reliant national economy.

However, he acknowledged that Resolution 68 also candidly points out existing shortcomings, including limited scale, weak competitiveness, modest technological capacity and a lack of strategic vision among most private enterprises, which are predominantly small and medium-sized. 

To unlock the sector’s full potential, he proposed ensuring consistency in institutional implementation, with a transparent and stable business environment in which property and business rights are fully protected by law. This, he said, would encourage enterprises to invest in long-term development and technological upgrading. 

Support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) must move beyond general policy slogans towards more practical and targeted measures, Thảo said, adding that this includes clearer industry-specific guidance, improved access to capital aligned with production cycles and the establishment of effective risk-sharing mechanisms between the State and the banking system to ensure funds flow to businesses in genuine need. 

He also urged the congress to prioritise the development of experimental legal frameworks for new business models and technologies, enabling enterprises, particularly SMEs, to explore high-risk but high-potential sectors without facing legal uncertainty.

Furthermore, he proposed creating a coordinated investment mechanism involving both State and private funds to support SMEs’ investment in research and development.

At the same time, stronger monitoring mechanisms are needed to address the gap between policy commitments and implementation at the local level.

Business satisfaction indices, he suggested, should become an important criterion in evaluating the performance of local leaders.

“The resolutions of the 14th National Party Congress must be quickly translated into concrete action programmes across ministries, sectors and localities,” Thảo said. “The ultimate measure of success is not the number of documents issued but the real growth and satisfaction of the business community.”

Digital transformation: a pivotal lever for breakthrough

Meanwhile, Nguyễn Phương Linh, Director of the Management and Sustainable Development Institute under the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations, said the congress documents place strong emphasis on digital transformation, elevating it as a key driving force for national development alongside the economy, culture, society and science and technology.

However, she noted that the digital transformation process still faces multiple challenges, including institutional bottlenecks, limited financial resources, inadequate technological infrastructure and, most notably, constraints in human resource capacity. SMEs, which account for nearly 97 per cent of domestic businesses, continue to face difficulties in accessing green finance, advanced technologies and digital data.

Linh stressed that digital transformation is not merely the adoption of new technologies but a fundamental shift in business models towards sustainability. The application of artificial intelligence and big data, she said, must be accompanied by technological ethics and social responsibility. 

In line with the congress’s principle of leaving no one behind, private enterprises must pursue a dual transformation that integrates digitalisation with sustainable development goals.

Linh noted that leveraging digital technologies to optimise resource use and reduce emissions is essential for enterprises seeking to meet increasingly stringent technical standards in major markets such as the EU and the US.

One of the most significant bottlenecks in the current digital transformation process is data fragmentation, Linh said, expressing her hope that the spirit of the congress would lead to mechanisms enabling private enterprises to access and use public administrative data on an equal basis.

At the same time, she emphasised the need to build digital trust through strict regulations on data security and artificial intelligence ethics. According to Linh, the success of digital transformation also hinges on retraining the workforce to ensure no one is left behind in the digital economy.

She proposed that the Congress provide a strategic orientation to mobilise the strength of the entire society in the innovation process. In particular, the Congress documents should clearly outline a roadmap for opening up government data. 

She noted that private enterprises, especially start-ups, need access to national administrative data, within appropriate legal boundaries, to develop practical and scalable digital solutions.

Linh also suggested the establishment of a council on industry innovation, comprising representatives from the State, enterprises, universities and social organisations. In this model, social organisations would act as a bridge between the real needs of communities, especially vulnerable groups, and the problem-solving capacity of businesses.

“The congress needs to make decisions on popularising digital skills across the entire population, with particular support for human resources in SMEs in remote areas,” Linh said. “Digital transformation should not be the privilege of businesses in major cities, but a fair opportunity for all economic actors.” VNS