Deputy Prime Minister: New generation FDI must create value for Vietnam

At the Vietnam Development Bridge 2026 Forum on May 13, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Van Thang said that Vietnam is shifting from the mindset of mass attracting FDI to selecting quality projects.

“New generation FDI does not only come to Vietnam to produce or exploit the market, but needs to create new value, capacity and position in the global value chain,” he said.

Instead of only caring about the scale of investment capital, Vietnam attracts foreign projects that focus on technology, creating added value, training human resources and connecting with Vietnamese businesses participating in the supply chain. Priority areas for capital investment in the coming period include semiconductors, AI, data, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, clean energy and modern logistics.

Currently, Vietnam has more than 46,500 valid FDI projects with a total registered capital of more than 543 billion USD. Accumulated realized capital reached about 357.6 billion USD. The FDI sector currently contributes over 20% of GDP, about 70% of export turnover and creates jobs for millions of workers.

Vietnam still maintains its position as the leading FDI attraction in ASEAN with the presence of many large technology corporations. However, the Deputy Prime Minister assessed that the link between foreign investors and domestic businesses is still limited. New domestic companies join the value chain of FDI enterprises in the low value-added segment.

He also acknowledged that competition to attract global investment has changed along with the trend of supply chain restructuring and green-digital transformation. Accordingly, investors are increasingly interested in institutional quality, policy stability, strategic infrastructure, data and high-quality human resources, instead of just incentives or low labor costs.

To attract new generation foreign capital, he said the Government will continue to reduce procedures, invest in infrastructure and human resources, and strictly handle transfer pricing, trade fraud and environmental violations.