On the afternoon of October 11th at the Presidential Palace, General Secretary and President To Lam met with a delegation of outstanding businesspeople from the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Vietnam Private Entrepreneurs Association to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Vietnam Entrepreneurs' Day (October 13, 2004 - October 13, 2024).
According to a report by the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry, following the Politburo 's issuance of Resolution No. 41-NQ/TW on October 10, 2023, on building and promoting the role of Vietnamese entrepreneurs in the new era, the Federation has coordinated with Party committees, Party groups, and provincial and city Party committees to implement the Resolution according to its assigned functions and tasks. It is gradually putting the Resolution into practice, improving the business and investment environment, promoting the development of national enterprises, and building business ethics and culture.
Having gone through more than 60 years of development and growth throughout the country's history, the Federation has consistently excelled in fulfilling all tasks assigned by the Party, the State, and the business community, making significant contributions to the development and integration of our country's economy, the growth of the business community, and the Vietnamese entrepreneur workforce. From its initial 93 members (in 1963), the Federation now has a vast nationwide membership network with over 200 business associations and more than 200,000 member enterprises across all sectors, industries, and economic components. The Federation maintains close cooperative relationships with nearly 200 chambers of commerce and international organizations worldwide.
Thanks to the leadership and support of the Party and the State, the business community and entrepreneurs have grown significantly in both quantity and quality. After 40 years of implementing the Doi Moi (Renovation) policy, Vietnam now has over 930,000 active businesses, of which 98% are small and medium-sized enterprises, approximately 14,400 cooperatives, and more than 5 million business households.
In 2023, the private sector contributed approximately 60% of GDP, generated 30% of state budget revenue, and employed 85% of the workforce. Besides its crucial role as a driving force of the national economy, the private sector also plays a positive role in effectively implementing the Party and State's policies on social welfare, preserving traditional cultural identity, mitigating the consequences of natural disasters and epidemics, and caring for the material and spiritual well-being of the people.
Simultaneously, it contributes to ensuring energy security, food security, strengthening national defense, and maintaining the independence and self-reliance of the economy in the context of increasing globalization and international integration. The private sector has seen the emergence of several large corporations with strong potential, advanced technology, and management capabilities, possessing national brands and international prestige, boldly venturing out to compete regionally and globally.
At the meeting, General Secretary and President To Lam recalled President Ho Chi Minh's letter to the business community on October 13, 1945, which included the passage, "A prosperous national economy means prosperous businesses for industrialists and merchants," thereby encouraging, motivating, and affirming the dedicated support of the Government, the people, and President Ho Chi Minh for the business community.
The General Secretary and President affirmed that the establishment of Vietnam Entrepreneurs' Day exactly 20 years ago (October 13, 2004) marked the recognition by the Party and the State, as well as the acknowledgment by society, of the role and great contributions of the Vietnamese business community.
Looking back on the journey so far, the General Secretary and President expressed joy and pride that Vietnam has a large and strong contingent of entrepreneurs, affirming their role and making significant contributions to the country's economic reform and development. Through their creative ideas and risk-taking abilities, these entrepreneurs have created businesses that serve as drivers of growth, generating jobs, paying taxes to the state, improving the living standards of workers, and promoting social progress. Many talented entrepreneurs have led their businesses through difficulties, becoming pillars in several key sectors of the economy, and possessing international competitiveness.
More and more entrepreneurs are shifting towards technology and innovation, participating in new economic sectors and business models, grasping and mastering the achievements of the 4.0 industrial revolution, and applying them to production to bring efficiency and competitiveness to the economy, and improve the quality of life for the people. Many Vietnamese branded products and services have reached the global market, affirming the Vietnamese brand's position at the regional and global levels.
The General Secretary and President pointed out that entrepreneurs play a crucial role in promoting economic reforms, shaping development policies, improving the business environment, and innovating the State's economic management; promoting competition, acting as a driving force for mutual advancement, fostering innovation, increasing productivity, reducing costs, and benefiting consumers. Along with that, exemplary entrepreneurs always pursue ethical standards, practice the principle of fair competition, and set a benchmark for society.
Besides their economic contributions, Vietnamese entrepreneurs have also actively participated in poverty alleviation, eliminating temporary housing, helping vulnerable people, and making significant contributions to sharing the difficulties and losses of the people during the COVID-19 pandemic, the recent Super Typhoon Yagi, and many other natural disasters.
On behalf of the Party and State leaders, the General Secretary and President respectfully acknowledge and commend the important achievements and results of the business community in the development of the country; as well as the contributions to building a strong business community by the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry and other business associations and enterprises.
Besides the significant achievements of the business community, the General Secretary and President also pointed out some difficulties and limitations, noting that the business community is still small, with weak financial resources and limited management capacity, and that not many entrepreneurs have reached regional and global competitiveness. The ratio of the number of businesses and entrepreneurs to the population is still low compared to other countries in the region.
Besides the difficulties caused by the instability and downturn of the global market, the business operations of entrepreneurs, both large and small, also face many challenges due to numerous obstacles in mechanisms, policies, laws, the capacity of management agencies, and the fact that the staff and civil servants do not yet meet the needs and demands of the business community.
Sharing the suggestions and proposals of businesses, the General Secretary and President affirmed that from the perspective of state management agencies, the understanding of the position and role of entrepreneurs has undergone positive changes in recent times. The legal system, mechanisms, and policies have been gradually improved; property rights, the freedom of business of citizens, and the economic activity rights of organizations have been institutionalized and protected by law. The State's management methods are more in line with the market mechanism; the investment and business environment has been gradually improved; and the view of not criminalizing economic relations has reassured investors, businesses, and entrepreneurs.
Nevertheless, entrepreneurs still have limited opportunities to participate directly in policy-making; their voices are still largely unheard at many levels and sectors, or are heard but not significantly or effectively incorporated. Institutional and legal obstacles, as well as the business environment, are slow to be addressed, including overlapping, unclear, and impractical legal documents. A significant amount of national resources are tied up in stalled planning projects, projects hampered by procedural issues, unused public land and buildings, assets involved in disputes and lawsuits, and assets in protracted legal cases, all of which are very slow to be processed and resolved.
To achieve the goal of transforming Vietnam into a high-income developed country within the next 20 years and building a green, inclusive, and sustainable growth economy, the General Secretary and President emphasized the need for continued strong reforms in the economy and legal system, prioritizing investment in high-quality human resources in key and leading sectors, and focusing resources on building strategic infrastructure such as electricity, transportation, irrigation, information technology, and digital infrastructure. He stressed the importance of creating a favorable, safe, and equitable investment and business environment that meets international standards, and promoting the role of entrepreneurs in the new era in accordance with the spirit of Resolution 41 of the Politburo.
The General Secretary and President acknowledged that the future of Vietnamese entrepreneurs is very promising but also presents many challenges. Technological advancements, globalization, along with rapid and dynamic development, and reforms to the business environment, will create new opportunities for growth, especially for those who are not yet entrepreneurs, giving them the chance to start businesses and become successful entrepreneurs. The business sector will play an even larger and more important role in the nation's prosperity.
Recognizing this as the time to redefine the role of business leaders and the mission of entrepreneurs, General Secretary and President To Lam expressed confidence that the business community will undoubtedly play a particularly important role in the new era – the era of Vietnam's national resurgence.
The General Secretary and President noted that the rise of the digital revolution, especially in fields such as e-commerce, financial technology (fintech), artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud computing, has opened up the potential to exploit global markets without significant geographical barriers. This presents an opportunity for Vietnamese entrepreneurs with a vision for technological innovation, establishing a "digital production method," leapfrogging and anticipating global trends, creating a strong position and influence in key industries, generating high added value, and propelling the national economy to higher levels of the value chain.
Looking back at the glorious journey of the nation's history and the achievements of nearly 40 years of national renewal, the General Secretary and President expressed joy that the country has an increasingly large and strong contingent of entrepreneurs today. These are people with aspirations to rise up and legitimately enrich themselves, constantly learning to improve the competitiveness of their businesses; fulfilling social responsibility, ethics, and business culture. At the same time, he affirmed that whether Vietnam can become a developed industrial nation with high income by 2045 depends on the contributions of today's and future generations of entrepreneurs.
The General Secretary and President urged Vietnamese entrepreneurs to uphold national spirit and patriotism, promote business ethics, possess great ambitions and aspirations for development, become exemplary models of business ethics, conduct business with integrity, humanity, and responsibility; and always maintain faith in their own businesses, the nation's future, and its future.
The General Secretary and President expressed his wish that entrepreneurs would promote the spirit of self-reliance and self-improvement, the spirit of solidarity and cooperation for mutual development; the spirit of innovation, creativity and the art of product marketing; uphold corporate governance and the application of technology, implement fair labor policies, and focus on brand building.
The General Secretary and President also expressed confidence that the Vietnam Confederation of Commerce and Industry, along with other business associations, would improve their operational efficiency, making practical contributions to policy-making and lawmaking, and contributing to the development of a workforce of entrepreneurs and businesses that meets the requirements of national development in the new era. He also emphasized that the State will continue to provide support, create favorable conditions, and promote the role of the Vietnam Confederation of Commerce and Industry and other business associations to operate effectively in accordance with their principles and objectives.
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![[Photo] Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh presides over a meeting on private sector economic development.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fvphoto.vietnam.vn%2Fthumb%2F1200x675%2Fvietnam%2Fresource%2FIMAGE%2F2025%2F12%2F20%2F1766237501876_thiet-ke-chua-co-ten-40-png.webp&w=3840&q=75)
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