Vietnam's prime minister calls for revolutionary steps for public investment

Vietnam's prime minister calls for revolutionary steps for public investment

On May 20, 2025, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired a national online conference to promote public investment in Vietnam for the current year. The conference took place both at the government headquarters and online with 63 provinces and centrally administered cities. Present were deputy prime ministers, ministers, heads of agencies, and representatives of party and national assembly bodies, including the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate. Chinh highlighted the slow growth rates of public investment and the urgency to dynamically address the challenges ahead.

The conference was convened to analyze the publicly financed projects and ensure that Vietnam strengthens traditional growth engines such as investment, consumption and exports. In addition, new drivers such as science, technology, innovation, digital transformation, circular economy and knowledge economy were brought into focus. However, serious challenges were also addressed, including those arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions, natural disasters and geopolitical tensions.

Public investments and their challenges

Regarding the current situation of public investment, the Prime Minister called for a deeper analysis of the slow disbursement and identification of obstacles. As of April 30, 2025, nearly $818 billion in investment plans have been allocated, representing 99% of the intended plan. Nevertheless, the actual expenditure was only more than VND128,000 billion (15.56%). The disbursement of central fiscal capital was about VND476.6 billion (13.33%), while local fiscal capital was about VND81.8 trillion (17.2%).

In the first four months of 2025, 10 ministries and 35 municipalities achieved disbursement rates that were above the national average. However, some agencies have had either no or very low disbursements, highlighting the need for a change in thinking on the part of the government and its organizations. The Prime Minister stressed that ministries with good performance must be rewarded and those with poor results must be held accountable.

A look into the future: decarbonization and electromobility

The Vietnamese government has also committed to decarbonizing its economy by 2050 to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, a pledge made during COP26 in November 2021. The transport sector is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for approximately 32.9 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2021. Road traffic contributes the largest part to these emissions.

Although owning a car is currently considered a luxury in Vietnam, the automobile market is growing at a CAGR of 15% between 2010 and 2022. Vietnam is even expected to have the potential to switch directly to electric vehicles (EVs). Forecasts suggest that electric vehicle sales will need to rise to 1.5 million by 2030 and to around 7.3 million by 2050.

Additionally, the transition to electric mobility is expected to create up to 6.5 million new jobs, with 61% in EV charging infrastructure. The government is advised to set up an inter-ministerial committee on e-mobility and take measures to promote EV adoption and develop the necessary charging infrastructure. These steps could be crucial to the objectives outlined under Decision 876/QD-TTg: by 2030, 50% of urban vehicles and 100% of urban buses and taxis should be electric or powered by green energy, with the aim of converting all road vehicles accordingly by 2050.

By focusing on public investment and promising development in electromobility, Vietnam is striving for a sustainable future. The challenges are complex, but the measures and strategies envisaged provide an important basis for making progress and achieving the desired economic and environmental goals.