On May 20, 2026, at the Party Central Committee Headquarters, General Secretary and President To Lam worked with the Central Policy and Strategy Committee and relevant agencies on assessing the country's development resources, associated with the goal of double-digit economic growth and establishing a new growth model. From this working session, a very big message was raised: To make the country develop faster and more sustainably, it is necessary to fundamentally change the way of organizing, allocating and operating development resources.
Resources are available, but must be clear.
Vietnam is not lacking resources. We have a market of more than 100 million people, a favorable geo-economic location, abundant labor force, a dynamic business sector, an increasingly expanded infrastructure network and a strong desire for development. But the problem lies in: Has that resource been unlocked, connected and used effectively?
A slow-progressing public investment project is a waste of resources. A land area abandoned for many years is a lost development opportunity. A business that spends too much time on procedures increases social costs. A worker who has not been retrained to adapt to new technology is also a form of human resource waste.
Therefore, the current requirement is not only to mobilize more resources, but more importantly to make existing resources operate more efficiently. Resources must be put into production, business, innovation and improving people's lives. Resources must not lie still on paper, in suspended planning, in slow-progress projects or in a psychology of fear of responsibility. To do so, first of all, institutional bottlenecks must be removed. Institutions must become a guideline for resources, not a barrier to development.
Growth must go into jobs and income
The goal of double-digit growth is a great aspiration. But growth cannot only be measured by GDP figures. For people and workers, growth must be felt through more stable jobs, better incomes, more reasonable living costs, more solid social security and more equitable development opportunities.
A rapidly growing economy but workers do not have sustainable jobs, businesses find it difficult to expand production, and wages cannot keep up with living costs, then that growth is not really inclusive. Conversely, when resources are properly allocated, businesses will have conditions to invest, production will expand, jobs will increase, productivity will improve and workers will benefit directly. Therefore, in the new growth model, workers must be placed at the center.
Infrastructure development must be associated with expanding the workplace. Industrial development must go hand in hand with skills training. Investment attraction must go hand in hand with requirements for job quality, wages, working conditions and corporate social responsibility. National resources, in the final analysis, must serve people. If resources are unlocked without creating better jobs, without improving the lives of workers, without strengthening social security, the development efficiency is still not complete.
As businesses grow, workers have better opportunities
Businesses are places that turn resources into products, jobs, income and budget revenue. To have better jobs for workers, businesses must grow in a transparent, transparent and stable business environment.
What businesses need is not only incentives. More importantly, simple procedures, consistent policies, low compliance costs, easier access to land and capital, and better controlled legal risks. When businesses are assured of long-term investment, they dare to innovate technology, expand production, recruit more workers and improve welfare.
However, support for businesses must also be focused. Resources need to be prioritized for real production enterprises, creating more formal jobs, investing in technology, participating in value chains, focusing on training and protecting workers' rights. Resources cannot be allowed to flow into speculation, into ineffective projects or into areas that do not create real value for the economy.
In the new period, the advantage of cheap labor is no longer a sustainable advantage. The new advantage must be labor with skills, high productivity, regularly trained and protected by harmonious labor relations. Therefore, investing in workers is investing in national competitiveness.
Public resources must be transparent and accountable
One of the most important requirements in resource operation is transparency and accountability. The larger the resource, the higher the supervision requirements. In particular, public resources must be used for the right purposes, for the right subjects, and with the right efficiency.
Each budget dollar must create social value. Each public investment project must have a clear progress plan. Each public asset must have an effective exploitation plan. Each land plot, project, and slow-progress project must be reviewed, classified, and thoroughly handled. We cannot let the assets of the State and people be abandoned while the economy needs more resources for development.
Along with that, it is necessary to overcome the psychology of fear of responsibility in the enforcement apparatus. Officials cannot be afraid of making mistakes and not dare to do it, but also cannot use the name of dynamism and creativity to do wrong principles. To solve this bottleneck, the law must be clearer, decentralization must go hand in hand with controlling power, encouraging innovation must be linked to a mechanism to protect those who dare to think and dare to do for the common good.
This is also the time when the supervisory role of the National Assembly, People's Councils, Fatherland Front, Trade Union organizations, press and people needs to be promoted more strongly. Supervision is not to slow down development, but to develop in the right direction, avoid losses and waste, and protect the interests of people and workers.
Unlocking resources is unlocking the future
The working session on May 20, 2026 set out a strategic requirement: if Vietnam wants to enter a higher stage of development, it must reorganize the operation of national resources. This is not just a technical task, but a requirement to innovate the development model.
Land resources must be put into production and business in accordance with planning and law. Budget resources must lead development investment. Enterprise resources must become a driving force for job creation. Science and technology resources must promote productivity. Human resources must be considered the center of all policies.
Double-digit growth is a big goal, but the bigger thing is that growth must create a stronger economy, a fairer society and a better life for the people. For workers, unlocking resources is not a distant concept. It is the opportunity to have stable jobs, better incomes, more suitable housing, higher skills and a more solid future.
