The private sector is identified as the leading pillar of Vietnam's economy, with the goal of having 2 million high-quality businesses by 2030. Photo: Hoang Loan

The article was immediately well-received, like a breath of fresh air for the business community and the economic future of Vietnam, with its guidance, conveying strength, aspirations, and defining the great mission of the private sector in contributing to a breakthrough for the nation's new era.

According to the figures cited in the article, there are currently nearly 1 million businesses and 5 million individual business households nationwide. The private sector currently contributes 51% of GDP, over 30% of the state budget, creates more than 40 million jobs, accounts for over 82% of the total workforce in the economy, and contributes nearly 60% of total social investment capital. General Secretary To Lam affirmed that this demonstrates that, with a favorable development environment, Vietnamese businesses can absolutely expand and compete fairly with the world .

On March 7th, presiding over a working session with the Central Committee's Policy and Strategy Board on the development of the private economic sector, General Secretary To Lam , while acknowledging the contributions, pointed out the difficulties faced by the private economic sector. He noted that despite its large number, it is limited in scale, potential, and competitiveness, especially in international competition. Furthermore, there is a lack of leading enterprises in key industries and sectors.

In Hue City, statistics show that there are currently about 7,600 businesses, of which 95% are small, medium, and micro-sized enterprises. Analysis of revenue structure indicates that in 2024, the city's total budget reached nearly 13,000 billion VND; of which, revenue from the non-state economic sector accounted for only nearly 1,800 billion VND. Revenue from household and individual businesses only reached over 116 billion VND.

Comprising the majority of small, medium, and micro-sized enterprises, the private sector needs supportive policies and the ability to thrive and adapt to changing circumstances on its own. (Photo: Hoang Loan)

According to General Secretary To Lam, with the goal of unlocking the resources of the private economy, by 2030, this economic pillar will contribute approximately 70% of the country's GDP, aiming for 2 million high-quality enterprises by 2030. The aim is to gradually form and develop many private enterprises with global competitiveness, mastering technology and deeply integrating into international value chains and supply chains. Alongside the state sector and foreign investment, the private economy is identified as a pioneering pillar in national innovation and development, based on the principle of leveraging domestic resources. Simultaneously, institutional reform will be prioritized, focusing on removing bottlenecks, building supportive policies, eliminating the "prioritizing public over private" mentality, and eradicating the monopolies of state-owned enterprises in certain sectors…

According to General Secretary To Lam, Vietnam's private economy is currently facing many institutional and policy bottlenecks that need to be addressed.

Once the mission of the private sector is defined and obstacles are overcome, experts believe this creates the conditions for a "boom" in the private sector. However, private businesses themselves need to stand up and act to achieve breakthroughs. This context demands that businesses be proactive, thoughtful, find ways to adapt, and ask themselves what they need to do in the next 5 years, 10 years, and so on.

This is also the time when private businesses must shift from a traditional environment to a completely new and different one, requiring them to have international standards. In particular, businesses must assess their own capabilities, focus on core values ​​to grow, compete, and develop.

According to experts, a major obstacle to breakthroughs for businesses in Hue is the inertia stemming from a lack of linkages, reluctance to collaborate, and limited capacity for expansion. Statistics show that in the first three months of 2025, Hue City saw the establishment of 90 new businesses, but 423 businesses registered for temporary suspension of operations. This partly illustrates the fragile competitiveness of the private sector in Hue amidst the storm of development and integration.

Kim Oanh