HCMC and Dong Nai leaders discuss transportation connectivity solutions

On the afternoon of October 21, at the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee Hall, comrades Tran Luu Quang, Secretary of the Party Central Committee, and Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) Party Committee; Vu Hong Van, Secretary of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee and Head of the province’s National Assembly delegation; and Nguyen Van Duoc, member of the Party Central Committee, Deputy Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee, and Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee co-chaired a conference between the Standing Boards of the HCMC Party Committee and the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee to discuss solutions for connecting transport infrastructure between the two localities.

Comrade Tran Luu Quang, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee, meets with delegates at the conference. Photo: Huy Anh

Comrade Vu Hong Van, Secretary of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee and Head of the province’s National Assembly delegation, meets with delegates at the conference. Photo: Huy Anh

Attending the conference, on behalf of the HCMC Party Committee were comrades: Le Quoc Phong, member of the Party Central Committee and Standing Deputy Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee; Vo Van Minh, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the HCMC People’s Council; Nguyen Phuoc Loc, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of the HCMC; Van Thi Bach Tuyet, Deputy Secretary of the municipal Party Committee and Head of the Organization Commission of the HCMC Party Committee; and Dang Minh Thong, Deputy Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee.

On behalf of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee, the following officials attended the event: Ton Ngoc Hanh, Alternate Member of the Party Central Committee, Standing Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, and Chairwoman of the Provincial People’s Council; Vo Tan Duc, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee; Huynh Thi Hang, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairwoman of the Provincial Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front; and Thai Bao, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Head of the Organization Commission of the Provincial Party Committee.

Also attending the conference were members of the Standing Boards of both HCMC Party Committee and the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee; leaders of the People’s Committees of HCMC and Dong Nai Province; along with heads of relevant departments, branches, sectors and agencies of the two localities.

Comrade Vu Hong Van, Secretary of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee and Head of the province’s National Assembly delegation, delivers a speech at the conference. Photo: Huy Anh

Overview of the conference. Photo: Huy Anh

In his opening remarks, Comrade Vu Hong Van, Secretary of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee and Head of the province’s National Assembly delegation, stated that in the atmosphere of excitement across the Party Organization, government, and people of Dong Nai Province in celebration of the successful 1st Provincial Party Congress for the 2025-2030 tenure, Dong Nai Province was honored to welcome the Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee and the City Party Committee’s working delegation to discuss solutions for connecting transportation infrastructure between the two localities. He emphasized that the visit reflected the HCMC Party Committee’s attention and support for Dong Nai Province in the process of developing and promoting infrastructure connectivity, with the shared goal of building the Southern key economic region into a major growth pole of the whole country.

Secretary of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee, Vu Hong Van, noted that following the provincial merger under the Party Central Committee’s policy, Dong Nai now covers a natural area of nearly 13,000 square kilometers with a population of about 4.5 million. The province ranks fourth nationwide in economic scale and possesses a comprehensive transport infrastructure system encompassing all five modes - road, air, rail, inland waterway, and maritime transport - seamlessly connected. He emphasized that this has created significant development potential and ample room for Dong Nai’s growth.

Over the past nine months, under the leadership of the Party Central Committee, the spirit of solidarity, unity, consensus, one mind top to bottom, smooth coordination across the board, and efforts to overcome difficulties and challenges, Dong Nai’s economy has maintained positive growth. Dong Nai's GRDP growth in the first nine months of 2025 was 8.86%, ranking 10th among 34 provinces and centrally-run cities nationwide. In the third quarter alone, GRDP growth reached 10.18%, placing the province third nationwide. With these results, Dong Nai Province is determined to achieve double-digit growth in 2025 and aims to reach a state budget revenue milestone of 100 trillion VND in 2025.

Dong Nai’s industrial park system remains among the top three localities in the country. Social welfare has been ensured, and the living standards of local residents continue to improve.

Leaders of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee present souvenirs to leaders of the HCMC Party Committee. Photo: Huy Anh

Alongside its achievements, Dong Nai Province acknowledges that some growth indicators remain uneven and its development is not yet sustainable, with infrastructure still lacking synchronization. State management in the field of planning and construction has not kept pace with the province’s development and has yet to match its potential and capacity. Efforts to address difficulties and obstacles facing several investment projects in the province remain limited, with key investment bottlenecks yet to be effectively resolved.

Recognizing the importance of implementing the breakthrough task of infrastructure development, particularly transport infrastructure in line with the spirit of the Resolution of the 1st Congress of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee for the 2025-2030 tenure, immediately after the congress, Dong Nai Province proposed and received the agreement and consensus of the Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee to organize today’s conference. The event provided Dong Nai with an opportunity to learn from HCMC’s economic development experience, including measures to strengthen transport infrastructure connectivity between the two localities.

At the same time, the conference demonstrated a proactive and responsible approach, as well as a strategic step toward further concretizing the Politburo’s Resolution No. 24 on the development of the Southeastern region and the Master Plan for the Southeastern region for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, approved by the Prime Minister under Decision No. 370. The plan clearly defines the goal of building the Southeastern region into a dynamic and modern economic center, with HCMC as the core nucleus and Dong Nai as an important growth pole. In particular, the Long Thanh International Airport, a national strategic infrastructure project expected to begin operations in 2026, will open up new development space for the Southeastern region and the entire country.

Dong Nai Province recognizes that without synchronized connectivity, opportunities will be lost; and if delayed, the province will fall behind. Therefore, at today’s conference, Dong Nai is committed not only to discussion but also to action; not only to reaching consensus on policies but also to reaching concrete determination, setting clear roadmaps, and adopting breakthrough solutions to promptly implement key transportation projects, including expressways, ring roads, connecting bridges, and the metro line from HCMC to Long Thanh International Airport.

Long Thanh International Airport is not only an international aviation gateway but also a regional connectivity hub that will drive development across the entire Southeastern region. To maximize the project’s effectiveness, synchronizing the transport infrastructure system between HCMC and Dong Nai is of particular importance.

Currently, to ensure connectivity to Long Thanh International Airport, Dong Nai and HCMC have been working with the Ministry of Construction to implement projects such as the Bien Hoa-Vung Tau Expressway, Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway, HCMC’s Ring Road No. 3 and Ring Road No. 4, the expansion of the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway, the Phan Thiet-Dau Giay Expressway, and the Dau Giay-Tan Phu and Tan Phu-Bao Loc expressways.

Once Long Thanh International Airport becomes operational, in addition to the aforementioned connecting routes, further investments will be needed in projects such as the Cat Lai Bridge, Phu My 2 Bridge, Long Hung Bridge (Dong Nai 2 Bridge), and strategic railway lines, including the extension of the Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line to Dong Nai’s new administrative center and onward to Long Thanh International Airport.

These projects will not only serve transportation needs but also create development axes for urban areas, industry, logistics, and high-quality services, forming an integrated and sustainable development space between the region’s two major economic centers.

Following its merger, HCMC has reaffirmed its stature and strength as the nation’s leading economic and service center. The Party Organization, government, and people of Dong Nai province aspire to learn from HCMC’s experience, drawing lessons and applying them to the province’s development in the coming period. With the support, cooperation, and shared experience of HCMC, Dong Nai Province sees this as a golden opportunity to take decisive action, create a turning point in infrastructure, and shape a space for interconnected development.

At the conference, Dong Nai Province presented two key proposals to the Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee. The first proposal is to reach consensus on defining the responsibilities of each locality in implementing specific projects; to accelerate the progress of projects that have been planned and approved for investment, ensuring their timely completion and early operational efficiency, particularly those directly connected to Long Thanh International Airport.

The second proposal is to study and add new connecting routes suitable to the actual conditions of both localities following the administrative reorganization, meeting regional development needs in the new period, and ensuring flexibility, practicality, and long-term vision. This initiative aims to optimize the advantages of Long Thanh International Airport and shape an integrated, sustainable economic space that will serve as a new growth driver for the Southeastern region and the entire country.

Comrade Tran Luu Quang, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee, delivers a speech at the conference. Photo: Huy Anh

Leaders of the HCMC Party Committee present souvenirs to leaders of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee. Photo: Huy Anh

In his directive remarks at the conference, Comrade Tran Luu Quang, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee, emphasized the importance of strengthening cooperation between HCMC and Dong Nai. He expressed his hope that the two localities would first build a close, cordial, and mutually supportive relationship before advancing toward a “strategic partnership.”

He expressed his hope that the two sides would share, cooperate, and support each other not only in transport infrastructure but also across all other sectors. Comrade Tran Luu Quang agreed with the two proposals put forward by the Secretary of the Dong Nai Provincial Party Committee and suggested that both sides engage in substantive discussions and exchanges, address issues directly, and anticipate potential obstacles and challenges during implementation. He emphasized that such efforts would enable them to devise effective solutions and open up practical and effective cooperation between both localities in the near future.

 By Phuong Hang - Translated by Huyen Trang, Thu Ha