Accompanying small and medium-sized enterprises

Dong Nai Province currently has more than 70,000 active enterprises, most of them small and medium-sized. They operate across almost all sectors, help create jobs for hundreds of thousands of workers, contribute significantly to provincial budget revenues, and improve local living standards.

Provincial Party Committee Member and Vice Chairwoman of the Provincial People’s Committee, Nguyen Thi Hoang, visits products of Quyet Thang Production Service Trading Company Limited (Tran Bien Ward).

As the fourth-largest economy in Vietnam, Dong Nai has consistently prioritized business support, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises, through open dialogues, prompt resolution of challenges, and significant infrastructure investments in transportation, logistics, energy, and high-quality human resources, all aimed at ensuring sustainable production and business growth.

Enterprises need difficulties removed

Following the merger of two provinces, the newly structured Dong Nai now consists of 95 administrative units, including 23 wards and 72 communes. The province covers a natural area of approximately 12,737 km², accounting for 3.84% of the country's total area, ranking 9th nationwide, and has a population of nearly 4.5 million, the 5th largest in the country. Dong Nai is home to a diverse mix of ethnic groups and religions, and currently ranks 4th nationwide in terms of economic scale.

During their operations, many businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, have called for support from provincial leaders and relevant authorities.

Dang Van Diem, Chairman of the Dong Nai Business Federation, said that recently, several enterprises have faced challenges related to customs procedures for importing replacement machinery and equipment for damaged items. However, due to regulatory constraints, the process remains lengthy, affecting production lines as businesses must wait for replacement parts. Additionally, administrative procedures for constructing factories in industrial parks still consume considerable time.

For young and small enterprises, Dang Quoc Nghi, Chairman of the Dong Nai Young Entrepreneurs Association, noted that many startups and young enterprises are seeking digital transformation support.

According to Nghi, while Vietnam and Dong Nai authorities are actively promoting digital transformation across economic, cultural, and social sectors, small and medium-sized enterprises face significant obstacles in adopting digital tools. Many lack the necessary resources, expertise, and budget to invest in enterprise management software. Given the large number of small and medium-sized enterprises in the province, especially those recently converted from household businesses, these enterprises encounter numerous challenges. Therefore, Nghi proposed that the Provincial People’s Committee provide shared management software for SMEs under a supportive policy framework to improve business efficiency. He also suggested the province offer training programs to help newly converted enterprises acquire essential management knowledge for sustainable operation and growth.

Provincial departments and agencies, as well as the Standing Committee of the Provincial Steering Committee for Enterprise Support and Economic Development, are currently working to advise provincial leaders on developing the Small and medium-sized enterprises Support Program for 2026–2030, in line with the provincial Party Committee’s resolutions and economic development goals.

Nguyen Kim Long, Provincial Party Committee Member and Vice Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee

Listening to and accompanying enterprises

Tran Vu Hoai Ha, Deputy Director of the Department of Finance, the standing unit of the Steering Committee for Enterprise Support and Economic Development, said that in the first nine months of 2025, Dong Nai intensified support across various areas, particularly in implementing credit policies, investment attraction measures, administrative reforms, and business development programs, helping stabilize enterprise operations before and after the provincial merger. During this time, regular dialogues between provincial leaders and enterprises were maintained, while relevant departments actively addressed issues in taxation, customs, and other administrative fields.

As a result, Dong Nai recorded impressive investment attraction in the first nine months of 2025: Domestic investment reached over 124 trillion VND, with 86 newly licensed projects and 37 projects with capital increases; Foreign direct investment (FDI) reached over 2.4 billion USD, with 142 new projects and 144 projects with adjusted capital increases; The province also saw 675 newly registered enterprises with total capital exceeding 6 trillion VND, and 143 enterprises registering additional capital of more than 4.1 trillion VND.

According to the Dong Nai Economic and Industrial Zones Authority, in August 2025, the new U.S. reciprocal tax policy officially took effect, imposing a 20% tariff on goods originating from Vietnam. This policy has created cost pressures for many FDI enterprises, especially those with a high export volume to the U.S. The resulting impact has driven up product prices and reduced the competitiveness of Dong Nai’s goods compared to those from countries either not subject to the tariff or subject to lower rates. In response, provincial departments and agencies have advised local leaders on implementing support measures to help businesses navigate these challenges.

In his directive on enterprise support for the remainder of the year, Vice Chairman Nguyen Kim Long emphasized that Dong Nai is improving its investment environment in line with Resolution No. 68-NQ/TW of the Politburo on private economic development and the Resolution of the 1st Provincial Party Congress for the 2025–2030 term. He reaffirmed that private economic development is a key goal in the province’s economic strategy. The role of the private sector has been increasingly elevated, alongside the domestic, collective, and foreign-invested economic sectors.

In terms of digital transformation for businesses, the Vice Chairman of the provincial People's Committee tasked the Department of Science and Technology with developing support software for enterprises. The Young Entrepreneurs Association was also asked to coordinate with the department by providing information and design requirements to ensure the software meets the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises in Dong Nai, enabling shared use and improving management efficiency in production and business operations.

By Ngoc Lien – Translated by Trieu Ngan, Minho