A nation may possess numerous resources but still grow below its potential if these resources are scattered, slowly utilized, or not transformed into productivity and added value. This is the central message of the National Scientific Conference “Unlocking and Effectively Utilizing Resources for Economic Development in Vietnam’s New Era,” co-organized by the National Economics University and the National Political Publishing House Truth on the morning of September 28, 2026.

Conference Scene

Attending the conference, from the National Political Publishing House Truth were: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Trong Lam – Director, Editor-in-Chief; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Thi Thuc – Member of the Editorial Board – Specialized Publishing; along with representatives from functional units of the National Political Publishing House Truth.

From the National Economics University: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Duc Tho – Party Secretary, University Director; Prof. Dr. Do Thi Hai Ha – Dean of the School of Economics & Public Management; along with representatives of the leadership of Schools, Departments, Faculties, Institutes, Centers, and faculty members of the University.

From the speakers: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hoang Van Hoan – Deputy Director of the Department of Political Schools, Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Van Huyen – Director of the Institute of Socio-Economic and Environmental Research, Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics; Prof. Dr. Sci. Nguyen Dinh Duc – Former Chairman of the University Council, University of Technology, Vietnam National University, Hanoi; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Sy Cuong – Deputy Head of the Department of Financial Policy Analysis, Faculty of Public Finance, Academy of Finance; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ngo Quoc Dung – Faculty of Planning & Development, National Economics University; along with scientists, experts, and representatives from ministries, sectors, and educational institutions.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Trong Lam and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Duc Tho co-chaired the Conference

The conference was co-chaired by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Trong Lam – Member of the Executive Committee of the Party Committee of Central Agencies, Party Secretary, Director – Editor-in-Chief of the National Political Publishing House Truth and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Duc Tho – Party Secretary, Director of the National Economics University; with the participation of representatives from central committees, ministries, sectors, research and training institutions, as well as numerous experts and managers.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Duc Tho, Director of the National Economics University, delivered the welcome speech at the Conference

In his welcoming remarks at the conference, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Duc Tho, Director of the National Economics University, emphasized that as the country enters a new phase of development, the issue is not merely about how many resources Vietnam possesses, but more importantly, how to unlock those resources that are currently obstructed, awaken latent resources, attract new resources, and allocate them effectively to create the highest socio-economic value. These are also the core issues that the conference aims to discuss and clarify.

“The National Economics University identifies academic research, policy consultation, and knowledge contribution to the country’s development as one of its important missions. We hope that scientific conferences will not only be a place to publish research results but also become a space for dialogue between theory and practice, between scientists and policymakers, between universities and businesses; thereby creating valuable scientific arguments and practical recommendations to serve the policy-making process for the country’s development in the new phase,” Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bui Duc Tho emphasized.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Trong Lam – Director, Editor-in-Chief of the National Political Publishing House Truth delivers the keynote address at the conference

In his keynote address at the conference, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Trong Lam, Director, Editor-in-Chief of the National Political Publishing House Truth, stated that in the new development phase, the issue of resources should be viewed not only in terms of scale or mobilization capacity, but more importantly, the ability to liberate, allocate, connect, and use them effectively. Thus, the requirement is not only to mobilize additional resources but also to remove bottlenecks, optimize allocation, and promote the transformation of resources into productivity, added value, and competitiveness of the economy.

“The development advantage of a nation in the new era is not only dependent on the scale of resources it possesses but increasingly determined by the capacity to organize, connect, and transform these resources into productivity, added value, and developmental strength. Therefore, the conference is expected to accurately identify limitations and bottlenecks while proposing feasible orientations and solutions to perfect institutions, innovate growth models, and enhance the efficiency of resource utilization for the country’s economic development in the new phase,” Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Trong Lam emphasized.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hoang Van Hoan – Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics presents the paper “Harnessing the Motivation to Transform Resources for Vietnam’s Development in the New Era”

In discussions at the conference, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hoang Van Hoan stated that during the 2015 – 2025 period, Vietnam’s investment capital, human resources, science, technology, and digital infrastructure have all expanded; the capital market continues to develop, and the contribution of total factor productivity to growth is increasingly significant. However, the TFP growth rate during 2021 – 2025 is only 2.91%, nearly unchanged from the previous period; capital efficiency remains unstable, and resources have not strongly shifted to high-productivity sectors. According to the author, there are several indicators that clearly show the gap between “having resources” and “transforming resources”: Trained labor accounts for less than one-third of the workforce; the proportion of labor in knowledge-intensive and technology-driven sectors is only about 2.4%. Vietnam ranks 44th in the Global Innovation Index in 2025, but innovation outcomes have not spread strongly enough to create widespread productivity. Therefore, it is necessary to place humans at the center of resource transformation, while ensuring the right to act, legitimate interests, and an environment that encourages creativity.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Sy Cuong – Academy of Finance presents the paper “Innovating the Economic Development Model Based on Science, Technology, and Innovation: Issues of Mobilizing and Utilizing Financial Resources”

Regarding financial resources for science, technology, and innovation, the topic of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Sy Cuong’s paper emphasizes the need to innovate the way financial resources are mobilized and utilized as the development model shifts to rely more on knowledge and technology. The question is not only how much is spent but also how much valuable research is generated, how many technologies are applied, and how much business investment is activated by the financial resources.

Prof. Dr. Sc. Nguyen Dinh Duc – University of Technology, Vietnam National University, Hanoi presents the paper “Developing Science, Technology, and High-Quality Human Resources to Support Economic Growth”

From the perspective of science, technology, and human resources, Prof. Dr. Sc. Nguyen Dinh Duc pointed out that Vietnam has achieved many positive results: the digital economy contributes 14.02% of GDP in 2025; labor productivity reaches approximately 245 million VND per worker and increases by 6.83% in real terms. However, R&D expenditure at about 0.41% of GDP in 2023 is still low compared to the breakthrough requirement; digital technology human resources only meet about 50% of the demand for 150,000 engineers annually. Without simultaneously improving R&D investment, human resource quality, and research-production linkages, technology is unlikely to become a real growth driver.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ngo Quoc Dung – National Economics University presents the paper “Growth Model Based on Science, Technology, and Innovation and Recommendations for Some Northern Cities”

Presenting the paper “Growth Model Based on Science, Technology, and Innovation and Recommendations for Some Northern Cities,” Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ngo Quoc Dung from the National Economics University (NEU) focuses on analyzing the cases of Hai Phong, Bac Ninh, and Quang Ninh.

According to the research team, these localities aim for growth based on science, technology, and innovation but have different economic structures, knowledge bases, enterprise capacities, and institutional conditions. Therefore, policy selection should be based on existing capacities, bottlenecks, and development requirements of each locality.

The Local Innovation Index (PII) 2025 data used by the research team shows Quang Ninh scoring 58.41 points, Hai Phong 58.09 points, and Bac Ninh 48.76 points. The research team believes that no locality is uniformly strong across the entire innovation chain.

For Hai Phong, the research team proposes developing an open innovation network based on the advantages of seaports, logistics, industrial zones, and large enterprises; increasing linkages between businesses and research institutions, universities.

For Bac Ninh, the orientation is to enhance endogenous capacity based on the electronics, semiconductor industries, and existing FDI enterprise systems. The research team proposes developing a support program for domestic enterprises according to different capacity levels.

For Quang Ninh, the research addresses leveraging advantages in infrastructure, marine resources, tourism, and energy associated with green transition.

From the above analyses, the discussions at the conference focused on significant shifts: from resource mobilization to resource transformation; from input-based allocation to result-based allocation; from administrative management to data-driven governance and accountability; from isolated resources to an interconnected ecosystem involving the State, market, enterprises, research institutions, and labor force.

Delegates take commemorative photos at the conference

Over 80 papers submitted to the conference explore research on various resource groups, from finance, public investment, public assets, land, enterprises, and foreign investment to data, technology, human resources, digital transformation, and green transition. The research results are expected to help identify bottlenecks that can be immediately addressed while recommending long-term mechanisms for each resource unit to create more value for the economy.

Article and photos: Communication Department

Media agencies report on the conference:

National Political Publishing House Truth: National Scientific Conference “Unlocking and Efficiently Utilizing Resources for Economic Development in Vietnam’s New Era”

Unlocking and Effectively Utilizing Resources for Economic Development in Vietnam’s New Era

Nhân dân: Unlocking and Effectively Utilizing Resources for Economic Development in the New Era

Lao động: Unlocking Resources for Vietnam’s Economic Development in the New Era

Hà Nội mới: Unlocking Resources for Economic Development in the New Era

Báo Chính phủ: Unlocking and Effectively Utilizing Resources for Economic Development in the New Era

Báo Sài Gòn giải phóng: Expanding Investment Capital, Human Resources, and Digital Infrastructure for Economic Development

Báo Công thương: Unlocking and Effectively Utilizing Resources for Economic Development

Tạp chí Kinh tế – Tài chính: Unlocking Resources to Enhance Productivity and Growth Efficiency

Cổng thông tin ĐCS Việt Nam: Unlocking and Effectively Utilizing Resources for Economic Development in the New Era

Zing News: Conference on Effective Utilization of Resources for Economic Development