Building Long Thanh Airport City creates a new growth driver

In a nation's development journey, some projects go beyond economic and technical value, bearing historical significance and marking a turning point for both the region and the country.

Party General Secretary To Lam meets with representatives of contractors working on the Long Thanh International Airport project. Photo: Collaborator

Creating a new growth engine

Vo Xuan Vinh, Head of the Institute of Business Research at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, said Dong Nai is emerging as a major growth engine, driven by its strategic location in Vietnam’s southern key economic zone and its role as a vital gateway linking the Southeast with the Central Highlands and other regions.

Dong Nai has a comprehensive transport infrastructure, including major expressways, national highways 1A, 20, and 51; railways; inland waterways; seaports; and air routes. The standout project is Long Thanh International Airport, a national key infrastructure development. With a first-phase capacity of 25 million passengers and 1.2 million tonnes of cargo per year, the airport is expected to begin operations in 2026 and position Dong Nai as a leading logistics hub and a prominent international aviation gateway for Vietnam and the ASEAN region.

Dong Nai is accelerating plans for a Long Thanh Airport City and a free trade zone to maximise the growth momentum from Long Thanh International Airport. The airport and related developments are expected to generate strong spillover effects, elevating Long Thanh into a new strategic growth pole for Vietnam, anchoring the southern key economic region while easing infrastructure and population pressures on Ho Chi Minh City.

It is no longer framed as a matter of expectation, but as a political imperative, underscoring the need for Dong Nai to act with greater initiative, determination, and innovation in implementing major national policies.

Truong Thi Huong Binh, a member of the provincial Party Standing Committee and director of the Dong Nai Department of Finance, said the provincial authorities have formally asked the central government to consider a National Assembly resolution that would pilot special mechanisms and policies for establishing and developing a free trade zone in Dong Nai. The proposal covers four zones in and around Long Thanh International Airport, totaling roughly 7,444 hectares.

Dong Nai’s proposed free trade zone is designed as an integrated hub, combining high-tech manufacturing, advanced and digital logistics, financial and commercial services, along with innovation-driven sectors such as information technology and the digital economy.

It is designed to capitalise on Long Thanh International Airport and the province’s established industrial base, while integrating with the Cai Mep Ha free trade zone and Ho Chi Minh City’s emerging international financial hub.

Once operational, the Dong Nai free trade zone is set to anchor a new generation of growth industries. It is expected to account for 8–10.5% of the province’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP), add 1.5–2.5 percentage points to overall growth, attract about 150,000 highly skilled workers by 2030, and help train some 50,000 engineers and technology professionals. The zone would also strengthen trade flows, draw Vietnamese firms deeper into global supply chains, and expand budget revenues through land leases and business activity.

The proposed Dong Nai free trade zone, anchored by Long Thanh International Airport, is set to become a new engine of growth, driving a shift toward higher-quality and more competitive economic development. The initiative is expected to elevate Dong Nai into a regional hub for industry, logistics, trade, and services, providing a foundation for sustained growth through 2026–2035 and beyond.

Developing solutions to turn aspirations into reality

The Long Thanh Airport City is planned to follow a modern, multifunctional aerotropolis model by 2045, envisioned as a new driving force for Dong Nai province and the Southeast region. The urban layout will be harmoniously structured with key functional zones, including commerce, finance and services; aviation logistics; high-tech industries; innovation hubs; eco-urban areas; and resort tourism, forming a diversified and forward-looking urban economy.

Based on this orientation, Long Thanh’s urban development strategy is structured around three strategic pillars. Long Thanh International Airport serves as the core, functioning as an international aviation and logistics hub for high-value-added services. A free trade zone covering nearly 7,500 hectares is identified as a growth engine, with development prioritized for key sectors such as digital logistics, electronics, precision engineering, information technology, pharmaceuticals, food processing, and high-quality workforce training. The Long Thanh - Bien Hoa - Nhon Trach - Trang Bom urban cluster is oriented for development as an innovative, high-tech industrial city network, serving as the primary growth corridor and catalyst for regional expansion.

Long Thanh International Airport is increasingly described as a “once-in-a-generation” national infrastructure project, expected to reshape growth prospects in Dong Nai province and across southern Vietnam. Once operational, it is widely seen as a “growth engine” for both the local economy and the country as a whole.

In line with the Party and State’s policy to position Long Thanh as a strategic driver of national socio-economic development, particularly for Vietnam’s southern key economic region, Dong Nai’s provincial leadership has, in recent years, worked to identify and advance priority measures aimed at unlocking growth momentum from Long Thanh International Airport.

One of the priority steps has been to press ahead with the national blueprint for Long Thanh’s urban development, in line with directives issued by the Prime Minister and subsequent conclusions reached by Party General Secretary To Lam during his inspection of the Long Thanh International Airport project.

It has also urged the central government to adopt a dedicated framework for the airport city model and the Long Thanh free trade zone, including pilot schemes in finance, technology, and e-commerce, and greater decentralisation to support a new growth engine.

The plan seeks to steer investment towards high-value sectors, from semiconductors and artificial intelligence to clean energy and biotechnology, while forging closer ties between enterprises, universities, research centres, and the emerging airport city.

Priority will be given to completing strategic transport infrastructure, including expressways, ring roads, and rail links, to directly connect Long Thanh International Airport with Ho Chi Minh City and the wider Southeast region.

Authorities plan to roll out a comprehensive workforce strategy, prioritising high-tech industries, logistics, finance and banking, and aviation. The approach includes specialised training hubs aligned with the needs of a modern airport city, expanded incentives to attract international experts and engineers, and deeper partnerships with leading universities and research institutes at home and abroad. High-quality education and training systems meeting international standards will be developed across Dong Nai and neighbouring provinces.

The province aims to sharpen its investment framework by diversifying funding sources and expanding public–private partnerships, while encouraging private participation in healthcare and education. In parallel, it plans to invest heavily in high-skilled human capital to support the attraction of quality foreign investment into the airport city and other priority sectors.

By Phuong Hang – Translated by Tam Binh, Minho