Training automation human resources at the training centre of Saigon Hi-tech Park.

According to statistics, Ho Chi Minh City currently has approximately 4.9 million people of working age, accounting for more than 8.6% of the country's workforce, with labour productivity 1.7 times higher than the national average.

As of 2024, the city's skilled workforce accounts for more than 87% of the total employed workforce with nearly 4.3 million people, the highest in Vietnam.

According to Dr Vu Thi Mai Oanh from the Ho Chi Minh City Human Resources Development Association, developing high-quality human resources is a priority task in the process of reforming the growth model, restructuring the economy, and aiming towards sustainable development goals.

For many years, Ho Chi Minh City has been a reliable destination for southern provinces and cities, as well as the entire country, in training high-level human resources. With many outstanding advantages in facilities and a team of experts with extensive experience in education and training, the city has become the first choice for learners, as well as for localities and businesses seeking skilled workers.

The training system, with about 370 vocational education institutions, makes an important contribution to training high-quality workers for the city. However, the quality of human resources, both in the business sector and the public sector, remains limited and inadequate.

The cause is attributed to the economic and educational conditions of Vietnam in general and Ho Chi Minh City in particular still being in the development stage; education and training focusing heavily on theory rather than practical development; backward level of science and technology; and the state management policy system in directing, operating, organising, and improving the quality of human resources still being slow and unable to retain and attract talent.

With the goal of developing human resources to meet the needs of the labour market and the requirements of economic restructuring, the city has been focusing on promoting high-level human resource training towards modernisation and international integration.

Accordingly, in 2023 Ho Chi Minh City issued a decision on the plan for improving the quality of human resources to serve economic restructuring in the city until 2025, with a vision to 2030.

The general objective of this plan is to train human resources to meet the needs of the labour market and the requirements for economic restructuring of the city; focus on promoting high-level human resource training, towards modernisation and international integration, providing post-training human resources of quality for the city and localities in the southern region.

At the same time, it is closely linked with the project of training international-level human resources in eight sectors, namely information and communications technology, mechanics and automation, artificial intelligence, business administration, finance and banking, healthcare, tourism, and urban management for the 2020-2035 period, with the goal of raising the rate of skilled workers to 87% of the total employed workforce by the end of 2025, and to 89% by 2030.

According to experts, to become a high-quality human resource training centre for the region and the country, the city needs to continue developing and comprehensively reforming education and training from objectives to content, teaching methods, organisation, and management towards a professional education system and vocational training aligned with global standards.

The city needs to plan the development of a network of educational and training institutions to supplement technical skills for general workers; continue to invest in building a team of highly qualified scientific and technical staff, expand the target audience for master's and doctoral programmes to serve key economic sectors; implement appropriate remuneration regimes to attract experts and scientists from inside and outside the country to work in research, creative, and new technology application facilities.

At the same time, the city should create a standard system for human resources for economic sectors, especially the city’s key industries, serving the digital transformation process in all occupations. This standard system will identify and build criteria that must be achieved by workers in terms of qualifications, skills, abilities, qualities, and so on, providing a basis for building the workforce.

Dr Nguyen Thi Luyen from the Southern Institute of Social Sciences said the city needs synchronous solutions not only for education and training but also for adjustments to mechanisms and policies, as well as the participation of businesses, training facilities, and the workers themselves.

In training, alongside training "intellectual strength", it is necessary to pay special attention to the criteria of training "mental strength" to form a proper work attitude, discipline, and high ability to overcome difficulties, along with a spirit of dedication, cooperation and construction for labour efficiency.

Training institutions need to further strengthen their collaboration with businesses in researching, building and adjusting programmes and teaching methods to meet the needs of businesses.