Overseas Vietnamese and International Partners Aid Vietnam After Storms
	Affirming Role of Overseas Vietnamese Community as Source of Intellectual Capital

In an interview with reporters from VietnamTimes Magazine, Dr. Nguyen Hong Son, President of the Vietnam-Japan Association of Vietnamese People, shared his assessments and recommendations regarding the Party’s new development mindset, the role of the private sector, and ways to effectively mobilize overseas Vietnamese resources to promote innovation and international integration.

Dr. Nguyen Hong Son.

Private Sector and Innovation - Drivers of Long-Term Development

According to Dr. Nguyen Hong Son, a notable innovation in the Party’s development thinking lies in affirming the private sector as a key driving force of the economy, rather than merely a supplementary component as in the past. Alongside this, positioning innovation at the center of the development strategy reflects a long-term vision that is well aligned with the increasingly intense global competition.

This approach not only creates favorable conditions for business development but also inspires a spirit of daring to think and act, unleashing social and intellectual resources, especially within the community of Vietnamese entrepreneurs and intellectuals at home and abroad. As Vietnam accelerates integration and restructures its growth model, this is seen as an important foundation for sustainably enhancing national competitiveness.

From the perspective of the Vietnamese community in Japan, Dr. Nguyen Hong Son believes that with appropriate incentive mechanisms and a transparent investment environment, overseas Vietnamese entrepreneurs can become “strategic bridges” in the development of Vietnam’s private sector. Leveraging their strengths in knowledge, international experience, and global networks, overseas Vietnamese can participate in technology transfer and the adoption of advanced management models; invest in and cooperate to build integrated supply chains; and contribute to shaping new standards of quality, transparency, and sustainable development.

In addition, within international startup ecosystems, overseas Vietnamese entrepreneurs can serve as mentors, angel investors, or connectors linking Vietnamese startups with global investment funds, thereby fostering innovative entrepreneurship and venture capital connectivity. Through symbolic products, services, and projects, the overseas Vietnamese community can also help shape and spread the national brand, bringing the image of Vietnam, a country that is innovative, dynamic, and deeply integrated, onto the world stage.

Building a Global Innovation Ecosystem for the Vietnamese Community Worldwide

For innovation to truly become a strategic breakthrough, Dr. Nguyen Hong Son believes that Vietnam needs to move toward building a global Vietnamese innovation ecosystem, one in which overseas Vietnamese experts, startups, and investors can connect, contribute, and jointly create value.

One important approach is the development of a flexible and transparent digital platform that enables real-time connections among Vietnamese experts around the world, categorized by fields of expertise, countries of residence, and potential contributions. This platform would not only serve as a space for knowledge sharing but also function as a tool for implementing concrete cooperation projects between domestic and international partners.

Dr. Nguyen Hong Son attends the 11th National Patriotic Emulation Congress in 2025.

In parallel, Vietnam could consider developing globally oriented innovation centers closely linked with the National Innovation Center (NIC), located in major cities such as Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang. These centers would serve as “launchpads” for both domestic and overseas Vietnamese startups, providing comprehensive support in legal frameworks, finance, mentoring, and market access, following a model in which the State plays an enabling role while enterprises take the lead.

Dr. Nguyen Hong Son also proposes organizing annual “Returning to the Roots of Innovation” programs, creating spaces for overseas Vietnamese experts and founders to return to Vietnam to share, cooperate, and invest, not merely through conferences, but with a focus on initiating practical projects in key technological fields such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, smart agriculture, and environmental technologies.

According to him, innovation must be closely linked with education and training. To build a modern national education system that is internationally integrated, Vietnam needs to move toward forming an open, connected ecosystem among domestic universities, research institutes, and enterprises, and networks of overseas Vietnamese intellectuals and students.

“This is not only a strategy for developing high-quality human resources but also an important way to awaken and effectively harness the intellectual strength of Vietnam on a global scale,” he emphasized.

On that basis, Dr. Nguyen Hong Son puts forward several specific solutions. First, it is necessary to promote the role of the “Global Vietnamese Intellectual Network” by sectors and fields currently under development, through digital platforms. Domestic universities and research institutes can proactively connect with overseas Vietnamese experts, lecturers, and students who are studying and working abroad, thereby fostering academic exchange, research collaboration, and the implementation of joint training programs.

At the same time, Vietnam needs to expand and improve the quality of international academic exchange and internship programs. Domestic students should be given greater opportunities to access global learning and working environments through exchange programs and internships at overseas Vietnamese enterprises or organizations with Vietnamese elements abroad. Concurrently, children of overseas Vietnamese who are pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate studies should be encouraged to return to Vietnam to participate in academic, research, and startup projects.

Dr. Hong Son attends Vietnam-Japan Business Day 2025.

In addition, Dr. Nguyen Hong Son proposes the development of “Education Cooperation Centers Integrating Enterprises and the Overseas Vietnamese Community,” to be established at major universities. These centers would serve as “transfer and connection hubs” between domestic training needs and the intellectual resources of overseas Vietnamese, with the accompanying participation of enterprises, especially large corporations, in roles such as sponsorship, recruitment, and commissioning training programs.

Finally, he recommends the establishment of mechanisms to appropriately recognize and honor the contributions of overseas Vietnamese experts in the field of education and training. Inviting them to participate in teaching, mentoring, or curriculum development would not only help improve the quality of domestic education but also create strong incentives for overseas Vietnamese intellectuals to maintain long-term, substantive engagement with the country’s development.

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