PM Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the conference in Hanoi on August 30. (Photo: VNA)

The business community has been a pioneering force in economic development and social welfare promotion, laying a solid foundation for national construction, protection, and development under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has said.

Presiding over a conference with enterprises in Hanoi on August 30 on the occasion of the 80th National Day, the Government leader stressed that over the past eight decades, the business community has always accompanied the nation and remained connected to the country's destiny, in both wartime and peacetime.

Even in times of adversity, Vietnamese businesses and entrepreneurs consistently demonstrated patriotism, unwavering determination, and aspirations for advancement, substantially helping to mobilise resources for resistance wars and national construction.

According to the PM, after nearly 40 years of Doi moi (renewal), the number of enterprises has grown dramatically. In 1986, Vietnam had some 12,000 state-owned firms and nearly 40,000 agricultural cooperatives while recording no private enterprises. Today, it is home to nearly one million businesses, of which 98% are private, more than 33,000 cooperatives operating under a new model, and over 5 million business households.

Expressing his delight over the growth of businesses and entrepreneurs who are leading the charge of socio-economic development and international integration, PM Chinh emphasised that even during natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic, they still tried their best to sustain operations and joined hands with the Party, State, and people to overcome challenges and ensure social security and equality so that no one was left behind.

The Party and State always pay special attention to supporting businesses, with a focus on refining institutional and legal frameworks, and creating a favourable environment for investment and business development. All enterprises, regardless of sector, are entitled to fair and equal treatment, he noted.

Additionally, the Government is pushing ahead with decentralisation, administrative reform, and compliance cost reduction to ease burden on companies. It is also working to remove bottlenecks for production and business activities, bolster public-private partnership, expand cooperation between domestic and foreign enterprises, and develop high-quality human resources.

PM Chinh stated that attractive policies are being penned to draw talent, particularly in emerging fields, adding the country is accelerating strategic infrastructure development to reduce input costs and improve labour productivity, thus enhancing the competitive edge.

The Government leader stated that Vietnam prioritises and supports big enterprises that lead several key sectors, while encouraging businesses to expand markets and build global brands.

The Government aims to help small businesses grow into large ones, and big enterprises become even stronger, integrating into global value chains and evolving into multinational corporations, he said, noting that the Politburo issued Resolution 68 on private economic sector development, while the National Assembly adopted Resolution 198, and the Government issued Resolution 138, all focusing on fostering private enterprises as the most important motivation of the national economy.

The PM emphasised that as Vietnam enters a new era of prosperity, civilisation, and global prominence, the Party and State call on the business community and entrepreneurs to join hands with the whole country to successfully implement the two centennial goals set forth in the Resolution of the 13th National Party Congress.

According to the PM, Vietnam aims to have around 2 million enterprises by 2030, contributing 55–58% of GDP, providing jobs for 84–85% of the workforce, and raising labour productivity by 8.5–9.5% annually. By 2045, the country targets at least 3 million enterprises, contributing over 60% of GDP, with international competitiveness and deep integration into global value chains.

He called on the business community and entrepreneurs to continue innovating their mindset, awareness, and vision; take decisive actions; and unlock all resources and drivers for the nation’s development.

The PM emphasised the need to mobilise and use resources through public-private partnerships, and the “public leadership–private management,” “public investment – private operation,” and “private investment – public use” models; continuously diversify markets, products, and supply chains, especially competitive export goods; step up trade promotion, connect supply and demand, and meet new export market standards, thereby contributing to promoting the development of an independent, self-reliant economy, and deep international integration.

The Government leader expressed his hope that under the Party’s leadership and the State’s management, the business community and entrepreneurs will continue to accompany the Government, the PM, and sectors and localities in implementing the Party and State’s policies decisively, coherently, and effectively, contributing even more to the rapid and sustainable development.

Building on this, the PM urged the business community and entrepreneurs to join the Government, ministries, and local authorities in driving three strategic breakthroughs of open institutions, seamless infrastructure and smart entrepreneurs.

Representatives of domestic and foreign enterprises attend the conference. (Source: VGP)

He emphasised the necessity to effectively implement the Government’s action programmes to realise the Politburo’s policies on science and technology, innovation, national digital transformation; promote effective international integration, lawmaking and enforcement, private economic development; and create breakthroughs in education and training.

The PM called on the business community to continue partnering with the Government, sectors and localities to seek bold, innovative, and breakthrough solutions, seizing opportunities not only for their own growth but also to contribute to the nation’s development, and promoting peace, cooperation, and development in the region and the world, guided by the principle of harmonised interests and shared risks.

He encouraged them to strive to overcome difficulties and challenges, proactively innovate business and production models, restructure enterprises, focus on enhancing management capacity and workforce quality.

The PM urged associations to step up support for businesses and play advisory and feedback roles in improving the legal framework related to business operations.

Meanwhile, FDI enterprises were encouraged to closely collaborate with Vietnamese companies to enhance technology transfer, train high-quality human resources, share management experience, expand markets, and integrate into global value chains.

Ministries, agencies, and localities need to continue vigorously reorganising their structures, effectively operating the two-tier local government model, and accelerating reforms to simplify administrative procedures, creating all possible conveniences for citizens and businesses, he said.

Lauding the significant role and contributions of associations, the business community, and entrepreneurs, who have consistently supported the Government in national development, the leader pledged to assist them in building and developing a united and thriving business community, contributing to the restructuring of the economy and the renewal of the growth model toward a green, digital, circular, and sustainable direction.

According to the Ministry of Finance, Vietnam currently has nearly one million enterprises, of which 98% are private companies, over 33,000 cooperatives under the new model, and more than 5 million business households.

In the first eight months of 2025, the country saw an estimated 128,200 new enterprises and 73,855 newly established business households, while 80,800 enterprises resumed operations. Registered FDI capital in the first seven months reached nearly 24.1 billion USD, with realised FDI at around 13.6 billion USD.

Enterprises across the country play a vital role in the nation’s socio-economic development. In the first half of this year, GDP growth reached 7.52%, the highest for the same period in nearly 20 years. State budget revenues in the first seven months exceeded 80% of the estimate, up nearly 27.8% year-on-year.

At the meeting, orders and certificates of merit were presented to outstanding businesses.