Vietnam bets on private-led reform under To Lam's renewed rule

Vietnam’s Communist Party re-elected To Lam as party chief for five years and launched a bold reform drive to overhaul administration, push private businesses onto equal footing with state firms, and target double-digit growth with 20 globally competitive private champions by 2030 while expanding state-owned ‘leading cranes’ to 50 by 2030. The plan aims to break out of the middle-income trap by 2045, but critics warn it could entrench rent-seeking and slow the move up the value chain amid external headwinds such as US tariffs.