Vietnam Economic Times January 26, 2026

Dear readers,

Since its 4th National Congress in 1976, after national unification, and under its Charter, the Communist Party of Vietnam has held its National Congress once every five years. The 14th National Party Congress took place from January 19-23, 2026, with the participation of 1,586 delegates representing more than 5.6 million Party members.

A new Party Central Committee (PCC), comprising 180 official members and 20 alternate members, was elected. The 14th PCC, during its first plenum on January 23, elected a 19-member Politburo - the most powerful body of the Party - then elected Mr. To Lam, General Secretary of the 13th PCC and Member of the 14th Politburo, as General Secretary of the 14th PCC. Meanwhile three members of the 14th PCC were elected as new members of the PCC’s Secretariat, which consists of 13 members, including Party General Secretary To Lam and nine other Politburo members assigned by the Politburo as members of the Secretariat.

The Congress unanimously adopted its Resolution, reaffirming core assessments of the implementation of the 13th Congress Resolution, the review of key theoretical and practical issues arising from 40 years of socialist-oriented renewal in Vietnam, and the 15-year enforcement of the Party Charter (2011-2025), as presented in documents submitted to the Congress by the 13th PCC.

Looking ahead, the Resolution sets out a vision centered on firmly maintaining peace and stability; pursuing rapid and sustainable development while safeguarding national defense; comprehensively improving people's living standards; strengthening strategic autonomy and self-resilience and confidence; and resolutely advancing into a new era of national development. It targets Vietnam becoming a developing country with modern industry and upper-middle incomes by 2030 and a high-income developed nation by 2045.

Key targets for the 2026-2030 period include average annual GDP growth of at least 10 per cent; GDP per capita of $8,500 by 2030; manufacturing and processing to account for roughly 28 per cent of GDP; the digital economy to contribute around 30 per cent of GDP; Total Factor Productivity to exceed 55 per cent of growth; annual workplace productivity growth of about 8.5 per cent; total asset accumulation of 35-36 per cent of GDP; average total social investment of around 40 per cent of GDP; social objectives to feature an HDI of approximately 0.8; average life expectancy to reach around 75.5 years, including at least 68 healthy years; 35-40 per cent of the workforce holding qualifications or certificates; and a sustained annual reduction of 1-1.5 percentage points in the multidimensional poverty rate. Vietnam also aims to rank among the world’s Top 40 countries in the happiness index.

The 14th National Party Congress was of great importance as it opened up a new era of national development - “The era of the nation’s rise”.

Speaking at an international press conference announcing the results of the 14th National Party Congress on the afternoon of January 23, Party General Secretary To Lam stressed that the Congress was held at a particularly pivotal and historical moment, in a new context that calls for a fresh vision - one that extends beyond the 14th term (2026-2031) towards 2045. “Vietnam’s development needs in this phase require fast, efficient, and proactive progress, making it necessary to build an appropriate development model,” the Party leader said. “Economically, Vietnam must adopt a model capable of delivering double-digit growth.”

Our Cover Story in this edition looks at the work ahead as Vietnam aims to post double-digit growth in 2026 and subsequent years in an ever-changing world, with recognition that a new growth driver is critical.

Warmest regards

Dr. CHU VAN LAM
CHAIRMAN OF THE EDITORIAL BOARD