BUSINESS FORUM 2026: Unlocking digital economy to fuel Vietnam’s economic growth

On the afternoon of August 14, under the direction of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), Business Forum Magazine hosted the forum "Business Forum 2026: Clearing Bottlenecks to Drive the Digital Economy as a Growth Engine in the New Era."

A strategic acceleration phase

Mr Bui Trung Nghia, VCCI Vice President, stressed that Vietnam is entering a strategic acceleration phase. The country is striving to become a modern, industrial, upper-middle-income developing nation by 2030 and a high-income developed economy by 2045.

Aligned with these ambitions, the Resolution of the 14th National Party Congress identifies science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation as the core drivers of Vietnam’s new growth model. Complementing this, Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW issued by the Politburo on breakthroughs in national science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation sets a clear target: the digital economy must account for at least 30% of GDP by 2030. This highlights a direct correlation between digital adoption and national productivity, economic momentum, and competitiveness.

Most recently, the Prime Minister issued Decision 1033/QĐ-TTg approving the National Digital Economy and Digital Society Development Programme for 2026–2030. The strategy aims to build a dynamic digital economy powered by platforms, data, and artificial intelligence (AI)—paving the way for modern production methods, revamped growth models, higher labour productivity, and sustainable green growth while seeking to foster a civilized, secure, and inclusive digital society, ensuring every citizen benefits from technological advances to improve overall quality of life.

"Deeply intertwined with the national digital agenda, the digital economy has proven to be a vital growth catalyst in recent years. It is reshaping modern productive forces and laying the groundwork for Vietnam to make a decisive leap in the digital age," stated Mr. Bui Trung Nghia.

According to data from the Statistics Office (under the Ministry of Finance), the added value of the digital economy was estimated at 14.02% of GDP in 2025—equivalent to approximately USD 72.1 billion, a 1.64-fold increase compared to 2020. Sustaining double-digit growth over consecutive years, Vietnam’s digital economy has risen to become the second-largest in Southeast Asia and among the fastest-growing globally, with e-commerce remaining the primary pillar, accounting for two-thirds of total market scale.

High-stakes targets for 2026–2030

The 2026–2030 Development Programme sets ambitious benchmarks: Raise the digital economy's contribution to GDP to roughly 30%; Support at least 500,000 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in their digital transition; Cultivate at least 5 digital tech enterprises capable of competing internationally; Develop and launch at least 5 operational data exchanges.

Achieving these milestones will require domestic tech firms to serve as the core force, anchored by leading technology corporations and state-owned enterprises driving innovation and integrating into global value chains. Digital firms are encouraged to proactively adopt cybersecurity standards and enhance regulatory cooperation with State agencies.

Operational realities show that embedding core digital activities into business models significantly boosts labor efficiency by streamlining processes, accelerating data processing, and optimizing technology adoption. However, while awareness of digital tools is high, the business community—where SMEs make up roughly 98%—continues to face severe credit constraints.

"Financial bottlenecks prevent many firms from investing in modern machinery, management software, digital data, cybersecurity, automation, e-commerce, traceability systems, and AI applications," the VCCI leader noted.

He argued that Vietnam's main digital challenge lies not in its pace of growth but in converting that growth into real value-added output, productivity, and corporate competitiveness. To meet the targets as set in the Resolution 57-NQ/TW—targeting a digital economy contribution of 30% by 2030 and 50% by 2045, while maintaining double-digit overall GDP growth (over 10%) for 2026–2030—digital adoption must move beyond superficial metrics toward deep, value-creating innovation.

Rethinking policy and unlocking private capital

Mr. Bui Trung Nghia underscored that the digital economy extends far beyond applying technology to daily operations; it represents an ecosystem anchored in data, platforms, AI, and continuous innovation. In this new landscape, corporate assets are measured not just by factories or physical equipment, but by data, source code, proprietary algorithms, and user bases. Adapting to these unique dynamics requires a fundamental shift toward agile, practical policymaking.

This agility should materialize through regulatory sandboxes for high-risk, high-reward digital sectors, as well as targeted support programs helping SMEs transform management structures and adopt new business models.

Furthermore, mobilizing private capital into digital infrastructure and governance projects will be critical—acting as the key to expanding economic operational efficiency.

The VCCI Vice President delivered a strong call to action, noting that while the foundation for the digital economy is right in front of us, seizing it demands faster, bolder, and more decisive execution to usher the country into a prosperous, high-growth era.

Concluding the session, Mr Bui Trung Nghia commended Business Forum Magazine for hosting the timely event. He expressed confidence that this forum would serve as a high-level dialogue channel to share best practices, debate emerging growth opportunities, and propose policy breakthroughs for the next development phase. All feedback and policy recommendations from businesses and investors will be compiled by VCCI and submitted directly to relevant government authorities.