Developing the Long Thanh - Nhon Trach region

Located adjacent to the country's largest city - Ho Chi Minh City, and possessing a strategic position as an important transportation hub, the Long Thanh and Nhon Trach areas have great potential for breakthrough development in the coming time.

Urban planning perspective of Nhon Trach according to the consultant's proposal. Photo: Pham Tung

Possessing significant development potential.

According to the plan, Phase 1 of Long Thanh Airport will officially begin commercial operation in the first half of 2026. This promises to create a huge impetus for development in Dong Nai province as well as the Long Thanh and Nhon Trach areas.

To realize the development potential of the "mega" Long Thanh Airport Project, Dong Nai province is developing a Long Thanh Airport urban plan based on a modern, green, smart, globally connected Airport City model, aiming to make Long Thanh a leading international aviation and logistics hub in Southeast Asia. Accordingly, the Long Thanh Airport urban area, as planned by Dong Nai province, covers approximately 43,000 hectares with key drivers identified for development including: industry, trade and services, logistics, and smart city.

In mid-February 2025, Phuoc An Port, the largest seaport in Dong Nai province, officially welcomed its first international ship. This event marks a "stepping stone" to propel this seaport further on the regional and international logistics map. Simultaneously, it is a milestone in the goal of developing Nhon Trach into an industrial city and port city. According to experts, with the ripple effect of the Long Thanh Airport City model, in addition to Long Thanh city, Nhon Trach city will also benefit greatly from the development momentum.

Dr. Ngo Viet Nam Son, a scientist and architect, Chairman of NgoViet Architects & Planners (based in Ho Chi Minh City), believes that the Long Thanh Airport urban area should not be confined to the current planning research scope but should be considered and expanded to include the Nhon Trach urban area and integrated with Ho Chi Minh City.

At the working session with General Secretary To Lam on the Long Thanh Airport Project on November 13, 2025, the Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Head of the National Assembly Delegation of Dong Nai Province, Vu Hong Van, stated: Long Thanh urban area, along with Nhon Trach urban area, plays a strategic role as a transportation hub and borders Ho Chi Minh City. It possesses favorable land resources and sufficient conditions to attract international investors to develop world-class dynamic urban areas.

At a working session on the Long Thanh Airport Project on November 13, 2025, General Secretary To Lam requested that the progress be accelerated, and that the Bien Hoa - Vung Tau, Ben Luc - Long Thanh, and Ho Chi Minh City Ring Roads 3 and 4 be completed soon. He also requested the early commencement of the Thu Thiem - Long Thanh light rail line and the Suoi Tien - Dong Nai Provincial Administrative Center - Long Thanh Airport metro line, connecting the Ho Chi Minh City inner-city metro directly with Long Thanh Airport.

Increase competitive advantages and attract investment.

In August 2025, Component Project 1A, the Tan Van - Nhon Trach section of the Ho Chi Minh City Ring Road 3, will officially be put into operation, connecting the Nhon Trach urban area with Ho Chi Minh City. According to the plan, in December 2025, Component Project 3 of the Ho Chi Minh City Ring Road 3 project will also undergo technical testing, paving the way for the simultaneous operation of the entire Ho Chi Minh City Ring Road 3.

At the same time, the Bien Hoa - Vung Tau Expressway Project will also be completed and opened for technical traffic. This is a vital transportation route connecting Dong Nai province as well as the cities of Bien Hoa and Long Thanh with Ho Chi Minh City.

Long Thanh urban area is the core of the Long Thanh Airport urban development model. Photo: Pham Tung.

It can be said that, in addition to Long Thanh Airport and Phuoc An Seaport, the transportation system connecting with expressways, ring roads, and provincial roads linking to Ho Chi Minh City and the Southeast region is opening up "golden opportunities" for the Long Thanh and Nhon Trach areas to accelerate development.

This new context also demands strategic changes in planning so that these two localities can maximize and effectively utilize their development potential and advantages.

According to the Dong Nai Provincial Planning approved by the Prime Minister in July 2024, the Long Thanh urban area is projected to have a population of approximately 320,000 people by 2030. Meanwhile, the Nhon Trach urban area is projected to reach 340,000-370,000 people by 2030 and 480,000-500,000 people by 2045. However, with new development opportunities, experts predict that the population of Long Thanh and Nhon Trach urban areas will far exceed the above projections.

Therefore, at the working session with General Secretary To Lam and the Central delegation on the Long Thanh Airport Project, Provincial Party Secretary Vu Hong Van proposed that the Central Government allow a review and adjustment of the population size of the Long Thanh - Nhon Trach area to 2.5 million people in the Dong Nai Provincial Planning during the ongoing planning adjustment period. From there, Dong Nai province will forecast, calculate, and plan land resources to serve as a basis for anticipating the wave of investment from large, capable, and experienced investors and corporations interested in investing in the province.
this area.

Also at the aforementioned meeting, in response to the proposals from Dong Nai province, General Secretary To Lam assessed the province's proposals as entirely appropriate. The General Secretary agreed with Dong Nai's proposals. Dong Nai should use them as a basis for achieving double-digit growth, accelerating the progress and effectively exploiting the Long Thanh Airport Project, making Dong Nai province an economic center of the Southeast region, a key economic region in the South of Vietnam and the Southeast Asian region in general.

Pham Tung

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/kinh-te/202511/phat-trien-vung-long-thanh-nhon-trach-c4b2cef/