MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING (MOET)
NATIONAL ECONOMICS UNIVERSITY (NEU)
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PRESS INFORMATION ON THE HIGH-LEVEL SEMINAR:

“Policy and Strategic Capacity for Vietnam’s New Era”

I. Background

Vietnam is entering a new era of development, guided by productivity-led growth, sustainable development, and efforts to equip people with the skills, opportunities, and security they need to contribute to and benefit from the country’s development.

To realize this aspiration, Vietnam needs not only a strategic vision but also to build and strengthen a comprehensive system of national governance capacities: the ability to formulate, coordinate, and implement forward-looking policies and strategies across multiple sectors in a coordinated, adaptive, and accountable manner, while maintaining this coherence over time and across different levels of governance. This is the defining feature of a capable developmental state.

These capacities have enabled countries such as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan (China), and Singapore to advance industrial upgrading, respond effectively to external shocks, and sustain inclusive growth for decades.

The need to strengthen state capacity has been clearly articulated in recent Party Resolutions and policy documents, ushering in a “New Era” of national development. UNDP has been invited to support Vietnam during this critical phase of reform by organizing a series of high-level dialogues to strengthen policy and strategic planning capacity.

Against this backdrop, NEU, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is organizing the high-level seminar “Policy and Strategic Capacity for Vietnam’s New Era” to provide a forum for exchange among policymakers, experts, scholars, and development organizations.

II. Objectives and Content of the Seminar

The high-level seminar aims to strengthen coherence between policy and strategy while enhancing implementation capacity, thereby supporting the development of the 2026-2030 Socio-Economic Development Plan and the realization of Vietnam’s Vision 2045.

The seminar is intended for senior leaders and policymakers from Party bodies (such as the Central Commission for Policy and Strategy and the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics), the Government (such as the Government Office and the Prime Minister’s Policy Advisory Council), the National Assembly, and experts. The dialogue series will comprise five (05) sessions, each focusing on a specific policy, strategy, or implementation challenge aligned with the priorities of the 2026-2030 Socio-Economic Development Plan and the implementation of Party Resolutions.

The dialogue sessions are based on UNDP’s understanding of Vietnam’s current priorities. Featuring leading international experts, primarily from East Asia, these dialogues will take the form of high-level roundtables tailored to the needs of Vietnam’s top leaders, policymakers, and strategists.

The dialogue series will comprise five (05) sessions, each focusing on a policy, strategy, or implementation challenge aligned with the 2026-2030 Socio-Economic Development Plan and the implementation of Party Resolutions.

Dialogue Session 1 – Developmental and Adaptive Capacities for Vietnam’s New Era

Presenter: Jonathan London (UNDP)

Dialogue Session 2 – Reforming Vietnam’s Approach to Policymaking

Presenter: Prof. Dr. Kenichi Ohno (GRIPS, Japan)

Dialogue Session 3 – Promoting Economic Upgrading: Lessons for Vietnam

Presenter: Prof. Dr. Lee Keun (Seoul National University)

Dialogue Session 4 – Connecting Trade, Labor, and Skills for Vietnam’s Development Path

Presenter: Prof. Dr. Ian Coxhead (IDE-JETRO, Japan)

Dialogue Session 5 – State Capacity, Digital Transformation, and the AI Transition: Lessons from South Korea

Presenter: Prof. Joo Young-Sup (Seoul National University)

III. Time and Venue

– Time: The high-level seminar will take place over two days, October 30-31, 2025 (Thursday and Friday).

– Venue: Conference Room, Floor G, Building A1, NEU, 207 Giai Phong Street, Bach Mai Ward, Hanoi.

IV. Participants

The seminar will bring together approximately 80 delegates representing Party, National Assembly, and Government bodies: the Central Commission for Policy and Strategy, the National Assembly’s Economic and Financial Committee, the Central Theoretical Council; the Government Office, the National Assembly Office; and the Office of the State President. Participants will also include representatives of several ministries and agencies: the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, the State Bank of Vietnam, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), and others; representatives of international organizations in Vietnam: IMF, ADB, UNDP, WB, and ILO; several embassies in Hanoi; research institutes, university systems and universities, economic experts, journalists, and others.

And the following keynote speakers:

Jonathan London, Ph.D., is Senior Economic Advisor at UNDP Vietnam and Associate Professor of Political Economy at Leiden University.

Kenichi Ohno is a Professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS), Tokyo, and Co-Director of the Vietnam Development Forum.

Keun Lee is a Professor of Economics at Seoul National University and one of Asia’s leading scholars on technological upgrading and innovation systems.

Ian Coxhead is a Professor of Applied Economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Senior Research Fellow at IDE-JETRO.

Joo Young-Sup is a Professor at Seoul National University and Chairman of South Korea’s National Digital Transformation Association.

For information about the high-level seminar, please contact:

MSc. Vu Phuong Linh, Department of Communications, NEU, mobile: 0973.256.257, email: linhvp@neu.edu.vn

MSc. Bui Huy Hoan, Department of Research Management, NEU, mobile: 0965.666.857, email: hoanbh@neu.edu.vn

Please take note of this announcement.

Organizing Committee

This is an automated translation. If you notice any errors, please contact the Department of Communications, National Economics University at phongtruyenthong@neu.edu.vn.