Leveraging advantages to create new growth pole

With Long Thanh International Airport set to begin operations, Phuoc An Port taking shape and a network of expressways and ring roads being connected, Dong Nai is gaining more room for development, creating favorable conditions for the city to strengthen its position as a growth pole in the southern region and nationwide.

These rare advantages are enabling Dong Nai to shape a new economic structure built around several key pillars, including aviation, logistics, high-tech industry, border trade, and urban and service development. The challenge is how to turn these advantages into genuine drivers of growth.

A turning point in the transition

2026 can be regarded as a pivotal year in Dong Nai's next major development phase. Long Thanh International Airport is expected to begin operations by the end of this year, while the Ring Road 3 section traversing Dong Nai and the Ben Luc - Long Thanh Expressway are being accelerated for completion. Once these transport links are completed, the airport will become part of a regional connectivity network linking industrial parks, seaports and urban centers.

The Long Thanh Interchange connects the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay Expressway with the Bien Hoa - Vung Tau Expressway.

More importantly, the economic space around Long Thanh is being reshaped. Under the new development orientation, development in the airport area will not be limited to aviation-related activities but will also extend to logistics, international trade, supporting industries and high-value services.

Politburo Resolution No. 16-NQ/TW, dated July 21, 2026, on building and developing Dong Nai through 2035, with a vision to 2065, identifies an airport-based, riverside and polycentric urban development model, with Long Thanh serving as the development nucleus for aviation economy, the aviation industry and logistics.

Speaking at the Forum on Developing Eco-smart Industrial Parks – A Driver for Investment Attraction and Green Economic Development in the Southeastern Region, held in Dong Nai on July 28, Nguyen Kim Long, Standing Vice Chairman of the municipal People's Committee, said the city would seek solutions to effectively capitalize on its new advantages. Dong Nai will also continue to screen investment projects, with priority given to those featuring advanced technologies, high added value and the ability to connect with the production and logistics ecosystem, rather than projects that occupy large areas of land but make limited contributions to the local economy.

Deputy Director of the Import-Export Department Tran Thanh Hai said Dong Nai has a distinctive advantage as it simultaneously possesses road and waterway transport networks, as well as air logistics advantages offered by Long Thanh International Airport. He said Dong Nai should aim to turn the airport area into a major cargo transit hub for Vietnam and the region.

If properly organized, goods from industrial parks could be consolidated, stored, distributed and transported to seaports or airports through multiple modes of transport. By then, Dong Nai would not only serve as a production base but also play a deeper role in the circulation and distribution of goods.

New thinking and approaches needed

If Long Thanh International Airport serves as an aviation gateway, Phuoc An Port could become an important link in the maritime gateway. Together with the expressway, ring road and waterway networks, the two gateways could help form a multimodal logistics chain.

The Ben Luc - Long Thanh Expressway section running through Phuoc An commune. Photo: Vuong The

Dong Nai plans to develop logistics centers and inland container depots (ICDs), including facilities linked to Long Thanh International Airport and the Phuoc An Port area. Once implemented in a coordinated manner, goods from industrial parks could be consolidated and distributed through the local logistics network before being shipped by sea or air.

However, Dong Nai's new growth structure extends beyond the southern area. The northern area offers substantial room for high-tech industry, high-tech agriculture, deep processing and energy development. This presents an opportunity for Dong Nai to reorganize its production space instead of continuing to develop industry in the traditional manner.

For this to become a reality, infrastructure development must go hand in hand with strengthening domestic enterprises. Economic experts point out that if the city focuses solely on attracting major corporations while local businesses fail to improve their technological, managerial and human-resource capabilities, the added value generated in Dong Nai may not match the scale of its existing advantages. At the same time, high-tech industries, supporting industries, new materials, logistics, aviation services and industries supporting supply chains should be prioritized in the selection of investment projects.

Dong Nai is now facing a development structure that is markedly different from the past. The priority at this stage is to connect these advantages into an integrated system. Only when aviation, seaports, logistics, industry, trade and urban development operate within an interconnected space can Dong Nai turn its infrastructure and spatial advantages into a new growth pole for the region.

According to experts, Southern Dong Nai could leverage its strengths in aviation, seaports, logistics and services; the central area could focus on urban, commercial and trade development; Northern Dong Nai could develop new manufacturing industries, processing and high-tech agriculture; while the Hoa Lu International Border Gate would open an additional connectivity corridor with the Kingdom of Cambodia and ASEAN markets.

At a meeting on solutions to boost the city's growth on August 18, Deputy Secretary of the municipal Party Committee and Chairman of the municipal People's Committee Nguyen Van Ut called on agencies and localities to adopt new approaches and solutions in carrying out their assigned tasks. Dong Nai must achieve a breakthrough in growth by changing its working mindset, taking the initiative and leading development, and capitalizing on local opportunities and advantages instead of merely addressing outstanding problems. Administrative reform and improvements to the investment environment will be particularly important for Dong Nai to achieve its set targets.

By V.The – Translated by M.Nguyet, Thu Ha