Dr. To Hoai Nam: Resolution 79 Repositions State Economy Role

Dr. To Hoai Nam: Resolution 79 Repositions the Role of the State Economy

According to Dr. To Hoai Nam, General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, Resolution 79-NQ/TW has repositioned the role of the state economy within the new development structure.

Resolution No. 79-NQ/TW, recently issued by the Politburo, opens up development space for the state economy. Sharing with Industry and Trade Newspaper, Dr. To Hoai Nam, Permanent Vice Chairman and General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (VINASME), shared information and the significance of Resolution No. 79-NQ/TW.

Creating Development Space for the Economy

Reporter: How do you assess the significance of issuing Resolution No. 79-NQ/TW on state economic development in the current context?

Dr. To Hoai Nam: As we can see, the special point of Resolution 79-NQ/TW lies not in reaffirming the role of the state economy—which has been stated in many previous documents—but in requiring the repositioning of this role within a very new development structure.

Reality shows that the growth model relying heavily on investment expansion, resource exploitation, and cheap labor has reached its limit. In that context, if the state economy continues to operate according to the old logic—doing ordinary business while shouldering political and social tasks—it will not only be difficult to create new momentum but also dissipate resources.

Therefore, the Politburo’s issuance of Resolution 79 can be understood as a structural mindset shift: from viewing the state economy as a sector “holding many resources” to a sector responsible for creating development space for the entire economy. This is an important adjustment, stemming directly from long-standing obstacles in the organization and operation of this sector.

Reporter: The Resolution clearly defines: the state economy must pioneer in creating development, play a leading and pathfinding role, promote industrialization, modernization, economic restructuring, and establish a new growth model, in which science-technology, innovation, and digital transformation are identified as main drivers, enhancing national competitiveness. What is your view on this issue?

Dr. To Hoai Nam: The view that the state economy must pioneer, lead, and pave the way, if looked at deeply, is not a requirement to do things instead of the private sector, but to go first in solving problems that the market itself has not or cannot solve.

These are fields with high foundational and spillover nature, requiring large investment, long capital recovery times, and high risks, but determining the long-term competitiveness of the nation, such as: strategic infrastructure, energy, foundational industry, data, national digital transformation, and core technology.

The Resolution’s emphasis on science-technology, innovation, and digital transformation as key drivers indicates that the state economy is expected to play the role of a “technology pathfinder.” However, reality requires that the sector assigned to lead in innovation must escape from very strict, even “defensive,” risk management mechanisms, which diminish creative motivation.

The key point determining the feasibility of Resolution 79 lies in the internal institutional reform of the state economy.

• If there is no clear distinction between poor management and the inevitable risks of innovation;
• If substantive authority is not linked to the personal responsibility of the head; Then it is very difficult for the state economy to perform the pioneering role substantively.

In the immediate future, the urgent task is to fundamentally innovate the governance mechanism of state-owned enterprises (SOEs), shifting strongly from administrative management to governance according to market standards; simultaneously, designing mechanisms allowing SOEs to accept controlled risks, linking the leader’s responsibility with innovation efficiency.

Focusing Resources on “Growth Poles” with Spillover Effects

Reporter: Resolution 79 sets a target by 2030 to strive for 50 SOEs in the group of the 500 largest enterprises in Southeast Asia and from 1 – 3 SOEs entering the group of the 500 largest enterprises in the world. In your opinion, to achieve this goal, what synchronous solutions are needed?

Dr. To Hoai Nam: The goal by 2030 to have 50 SOEs in the Top 500 Southeast Asia and 1 – 3 SOEs in the Top 500 World is a high goal, but feasible if implemented correctly.

From practice, it can be seen that the problem lies not in the lack of resources, but in how resources are allocated and used. Restructuring needs to focus on forming a number of truly strong state groups operating in key fields, capable of regional and international competition, instead of maintaining too many medium-sized enterprises with limited efficiency.

Looking deeper, Vietnam does not lack large SOEs, but has very few enterprises that are truly strong in technology, governance, and the ability to lead the value chain.

Therefore, the core solution is not just to pour more capital, but to restructure the investment portfolio, focusing resources on “growth poles” with high spillover effects; accepting to narrow down or withdraw from areas where the private sector performs better. At the same time, definitively resolving the “human bottleneck.”

Reporter: The Resolution also clearly states the policy of encouraging the private sector and social organizations to participate in providing public services; expanding and improving the efficiency of public-private partnership mechanisms in competitive public service areas. How do you assess this orientation?

Dr. To Hoai Nam: From a practical perspective, this is the way to solve the problem of “both lacking resources and lacking efficiency” in many current public service areas. However, for this policy not to stop at slogans, the State must shift from the mindset of direct provision to the mindset of institutional design and quality monitoring.

In my opinion, for this policy to be truly feasible, there needs to be a clear, transparent legal framework on ordering, bidding, and public-private partnerships (PPP) in public services. This is not only a solution to reduce the burden on the state budget but, more importantly, a way to effectively exploit social resources, improve public service quality, and create more development room for enterprises, especially Vietnamese Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

In that structure:

• The State economy plays the pillar role ensuring stability, orientation, and social equity.
• The Private sector, especially SMEs, becomes the flexible, creative, and effective execution force.

This is the important intersection between state economic development and private economic development; if organized well, it will create a resonance effect.

Reporter: Thank you, Sir!

Conclusion: According to Dr. To Hoai Nam, Resolution 79-NQ/TW truly becomes a “compass” for state economic reform; a measure of transforming from a “resource keeper” to a “development driver”; leading, supporting, and activating other economic sectors to develop together in a new, modern, and more sustainable growth structure for the state economy.