Deputy Prime Minister Nguyễn Chí Dũng: “The country’s major challenges weigh heavily on my mind — and we must resolve them together.

DNHN - On the morning of November 26, 2025, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyễn Chí Dũng chaired a high-level working session at the National Innovation Center (NIC) in Hòa Lạc.

The meeting was attended by the Vietnam Innovation Network (VIN) and leading technology experts from the nation’s strategic high-tech sectors.

The meeting was regarded as one of the most in-depth discussions to date on Vietnam’s strategy for developing 11 national strategic technology sectors, framed under the call to action: “Mobilize global Vietnamese intellect – act urgently in the coming years.”

From the outset, the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized that Vietnam is entering a new growth phase in which science, technology, and innovation must become the primary driving forces. Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW of the Politburo and Decision No. 1131/QĐ-TTg of the Prime Minister have clearly defined 11 strategic technology sectors and 32 priority products, laying the groundwork for Vietnam’s next wave of technological advancement.

A decisive question: What must Vietnam do in the next 1–2 years?

Chairing the session, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyễn Chí Dũng urged the experts to focus squarely on a pivotal question: “What must Vietnam do in the next 1–2 years to accelerate the development of strategic technology sectors?”

He candidly noted: “We are still struggling to choose the right major challenges and design sufficiently strong programs to lead each sector. I expect concrete, feasible, and breakthrough proposals, not general analyses.”

Technology as the key to national resilience

After listening to expert recommendations, the Deputy Prime Minister drew attention to a series of urgent national challenges, from climate-induced storms, flash floods, and landslides affecting numerous provinces, to worsening congestion and flooding in major cities. He referenced international experience, noting that countries such as the United Kingdom have spent hundreds of billions of dollars to overcome similar issues.

Only technology, he stressed, can help Vietnam master new industries, develop advanced materials, and solve the nation’s most pressing and existential challenges.

Speaking to Enterprise & Integration Magazine, he said: “I could genuinely feel the Deputy Prime Minister’s deep concern for the country’s major challenges. We have deployed real-time technologies across several localities to warn citizens against entering landslide-prone areas, simulate potential flooding, and support search-and-rescue and evacuation planning. Our systems also monitor dam discharge and structural deformation in real time, ensuring dam safety and reducing risks to communities. Technology must directly protect our people and our nation.”

Institutional reform: The backbone of strategic technology development

The Deputy Prime Minister stressed that institutional modernization is fundamental to Vietnam’s success in strategic technology development. In recent years, the number of laws, decrees, circulars, and regulatory frameworks drafted with the participation of the Ministry of Science & Technology has reached record levels, creating a more enabling environment for research, experimentation, technology transfer, and public-private partnerships.

He affirmed that by the end of December this year, the entire regulatory framework for the innovation ecosystem will be synchronized, effectively removing legal bottlenecks that hinder technological advancement.

Beyond the 11 sectors: Technology must strengthen national competitiveness

Strategic technology development, he noted, must not be limited to a list of 11 sectors and 35 products. The vision must be broader — ensuring that technology enhances national safety, productivity, societal well-being, and competitiveness.

To achieve this, the innovation ecosystem must operate as a unified whole:

The Government: strategic leadership and policy direction

Enterprises: the center of innovation

Universities and research institutes: talent and knowledge generators

Global Vietnamese experts: pioneers bringing advanced technologies into practical application

During the discussion, the Deputy Prime Minister emphasized the importance of establishing new national-level positions such as a Chief Engineer and Chief Architect for major technology projects — roles essential to standard-setting, core technology design, structural planning, and implementation oversight.

In the cybersecurity session, Ngô Minh Hiếu (Hiếu PC), Director of the Vietnam Anti-Scam Organization, issued a strong warning and outlined key recommendations:

“To help Vietnam move fast in strategic technologies, we must start with digital trust, clean data, and real-world technical talent. Over the next 1–2 years, Vietnam needs to establish a National Center for Anti-Fraud and Cybercrime, develop a secure data-sharing sandbox, and invest in training AI and cybersecurity engineers. In the long term, we must build a Vietnamese digital-sovereignty ecosystem, become the cybersecurity hub of Southeast Asia, and enact a next-generation digital user protection law.”

Insights from semiconductors, biotech, UAVs, and Digital Twin

Experts from numerous fields shared their perspectives:

Semiconductors: Taiwanese experts, representing a community where more than 40,000 Vietnamese students are studying, half of them in engineering, proposed strengthening training, internships, and technology transfer through the INTENSE model, including 880 STEM semiconductor scholarships by 2026.

Biotechnology & Genomics: Genetica representatives assessed global market responses to AI-driven genomics and discussed the potential for Vietnam to build a regional biohub.

UAVs & Low-altitude aviation: Specialists highlighted Korean lessons and recommended Vietnam develop small-to-medium UAVs along with a national low-altitude airspace management system.

Digital Twin & AI: Dassault Systèmes outlined the opportunity to establish a Digital Twin and AI R&D Center with NIC, training a generation of Virtual Twin - AI engineers, “Make in Vietnam.”

The Deputy Prime Minister said he was “deeply impressed by the insightful, solution-oriented, and globally aligned proposals presented.”

From dialogue to action: Assignments to ministries and VIN

After more than three hours of intensive discussion, Deputy Prime Minister Dũng instructed:

The Ministry of Finance is to design mechanisms to mobilize resources and transform NIC into the nucleus of Vietnam’s strategic technology ecosystem.

The Ministry of Science & Technology is to finalize standards, intellectual-property mechanisms, and national-level science tasks.

The Vietnam Innovation Network aims to establish strong research groups, develop prototype technologies, and proactively propose priority implementation programs.

A call to experts: “We must move together, decisively and persistently.”

In his closing message, the Deputy Prime Minister delivered a strong appeal to the expert community: “Experts must not only conduct research, but they must also engage in policy critique, provide technological guidance, train talent, and transfer know-how. Vietnam must fully leverage the intellect of its global diaspora. Developing strategic technology sectors is essential to national strength. The remaining task is for all of us to move forward together, decisively and persistently, to place Vietnam firmly on a new, stronger growth trajectory toward prosperity and national resilience.”

Dr. Nguyen Thuy Lan

Vietnam version: https://doanhnghiephoinhap.vn/pho-thu-tuong-nguyen-chi-dung-nhung-van-de-lon-cua-dat-nuoc-va-toi-luon-tran-tro-chung-ta-phai-cung-giai-quyet-cho-duoc-122126.html