New industrial development strategy

Long Thanh International Airport, expressways, seaports, and new urban areas are reshaping Dong Nai's development structure. Within the new city's development space, Dong Nai's industrial sector must also transform, not simply by expanding its industrial land bank, but by reorganizing toward greener, high-tech development integrated with logistics, services, innovation, and workers' living spaces.

The high-tech factory of Germany's Bosch Group at Long Thanh Industrial Park.

Opinions from experts, scientists, and managers at the forum "Developing Smart - Eco Industrial Parks – a Driving Force for Investment Attraction and Green Economic Development in the Southeast Region", held on July 28, offered several orientations and strategies for the future development of Dong Nai's industrial sector.

A new vision for development

For many years, the industry sector has been an important driver of growth in Dong Nai, supported by a large-scale network of industrial parks and a broad base of foreign direct investment (FDI) enterprises. However, as the city's development space expands, the challenge is no longer simply to secure more industrial land, but to determine where industrial activities should be located and which development models should be adopted to avoid placing additional pressure on urban areas.

According to Pham Viet Phuong, Deputy Head in charge of the Dong Nai Industrial Parks and Economic Zones Authority, in implementing Resolution No. 16-NQ/TW on the construction and development of Dong Nai City through 2035, with a vision to 2065, the city is gradually restructuring its industrial spatial layout. The northern area, which still has considerable land potential, is being oriented as a new industrial growth pole, with priority given to high-tech industries, supporting industries, deep processing, logistics, the circular economy, and eco-industrial parks. Meanwhile, the southern area will gradually reduce industrial pressure and prioritize urban development, services, logistics, airport-related activities, and high-value-added industries.

Notably, this shift is not merely about finding additional land for factories, but about redefining the roles of different development spaces. Dong Nai's industrial areas, particularly those surrounding the Long Thanh Airport urban area, will be planned alongside logistics hubs, digital infrastructure, urban areas, housing, services, and workforce training facilities. This marks a shift from the concept of "planning land for industrial parks" to "planning an industrial ecosystem." The new development space also requires a change in the quality of investment capital. Dong Nai can no longer rely primarily on land and labor advantages to attract investment, but must raise its standards for project selection.

Nguyen Kim Long, Member of the Standing Board of the City Party Committee, Standing Vice Chairman of the City People's Committee, said the green transition has become an urgent requirement. Developing eco-industrial and smart industrial parks will not only address environmental issues but also help reorganize production, conserve resources, reduce costs, improve productivity, and enhance business competitiveness.

Industrial development goes hand in hand with social factors

Ho Sy Hung, Chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that in the coming period, the development of eco-industrial parks must simultaneously ensure economic, environmental, and social requirements. The transition should go beyond waste-treatment systems to promote linkages among enterprises, the shared use of infrastructure, and the exchange of raw materials, by-products, energy, and water, thereby creating synergies.

This is a challenging task for a locality with a large industrial base. Existing industrial parks cannot simply shut down and start over, but neither can the old model continue indefinitely. Therefore, Dong Nai must gradually transform existing industrial parks while raising standards for new ones.

According to experts, Dong Nai's major advantage lies in its connectivity. Long Thanh International Airport, Phuoc An Port, the expressway network, waterways, and interregional transport routes are creating a multimodal transport network. Once these hubs are seamlessly connected, industrial parks will no longer be "production islands" but become "links" in logistics and supply chains.

Alongside this is a change in the way investors are selected. Dong Nai City is prioritizing high technology, semiconductors, AI (artificial intelligence), digital technology, aerospace, biotechnology, new materials, high-tech logistics, and other high-value-added industries. At the same time, the city will screen out labor-intensive projects, consume excessive energy, use land inefficiently, or pose a high risk of pollution.

However, a modern industrial park is not simply a collection of modern factories. Nguyen Van Ut, Deputy Secretary of the City Party Committee, Chairman of the Dong Nai City People's Committee, emphasized that the development of civilized, eco-industrial parks with amenities should not only serve production and business activities but also meet social welfare needs. The city also places importance on investors with long-term vision, advanced technologies, and a strong sense of responsibility toward the environment, workers, and the community.

This highlights a very practical issue: Dong Nai's future industrial space must also be a living space. Housing for workers, schools, healthcare facilities, services, transport connectivity, and cultural institutions can no longer be treated as afterthoughts once factories are operational.

Dong Nai's new industrial strategy is also a strategy for reorganizing urban space. Industry must be integrated with urban development; growth must go hand in hand with greening; and the advantages of land and connectivity must be transformed into advantages in technology, productivity, and quality of life for the city in the future.

By Vuong The – Translated by Mai Nga, Minho