Hanoi, July 15, 2026 – The Europe Today: Party General Secretary and State President Tô Lâm has called for the development of Việtnam’s maritime industry into a strategic pillar of national growth, underscoring its vital role in supporting the marine economy, strengthening national defence and security, and enhancing the country’s strategic autonomy.
Chairing a high-level meeting with relevant agencies in Hà Nội on Tuesday, President Lâm said Việt Nam must preserve and strengthen its core capabilities in ship design, construction, repair, conversion and technical maintenance to ensure resilience against global supply-chain disruptions, market fluctuations and emergency situations.
He stressed that the shipbuilding industry should be developed through an integrated ecosystem approach, linked with the expansion of the merchant fleet, inland waterway transport, seaports, logistics, supporting industries and lifecycle services, rather than through fragmented investments by individual factories or localities.
President Lâm said the State should serve as a facilitator by providing strategic direction, improving institutions, organising markets and safeguarding essential industrial capabilities, while enterprises should take the lead in investment, production, innovation and competitiveness with full accountability for their performance.
He emphasised that maritime industry development must be selective, demand-driven and aligned with Việt Nam’s long-term competitive advantages. Investment decisions, he said, should prioritise technology transfer, management capacity, market potential and domestic value creation, while avoiding scattered investment and ensuring strict adherence to quality, safety and environmental standards.
The Vietnamese leader also highlighted the importance of international cooperation, foreign investment and the development of dual-use defence industries to reinforce the country’s strategic independence.
For immediate priorities, President Lâm directed authorities to remove bottlenecks, unlock market opportunities and maximise the utilisation of existing industrial capacity.
He instructed the Government’s Party Committee to formulate a National Maritime and Marine Engineering Industry Development Programme through 2035, with a vision to 2050, outlining clear objectives, implementation roadmaps, financing mechanisms and integration with national strategies covering shipping, inland waterways, ports, logistics, marine energy and defence.
The President further ordered a comprehensive review of the country’s maritime industrial capabilities to determine which sectors should be preserved, upgraded, restructured or phased out, while identifying strategically important enterprises, technologies, assets and skilled personnel to support future policymaking and resource allocation.
He also called for tailored financial, credit, insurance and guarantee mechanisms suited to the shipbuilding industry’s long project cycles and high investment risks, stressing that any government support should be performance-based, transparent and tied to confirmed orders and viable business plans.
President Lâm urged stronger alignment between domestic demand for commercial, public-service, offshore and defence vessels and national industrial capacity, while prioritising ship repair, retrofitting, green upgrades and maintenance services to maximise existing infrastructure and retain skilled workers.
He emphasised that unresolved legal and legacy issues within the sector must be addressed in accordance with the law while safeguarding the legitimate interests of the State, creditors, employees and other stakeholders, warning against measures that could result in the loss of strategic industrial assets or highly skilled human resources.
Looking ahead, President Lâm said Việt Nam must build a modern, green, digital and internationally competitive maritime industrial ecosystem by promoting supporting industries, advanced ship design, scientific research, technology, standards, data systems and high-quality workforce development.
He also advocated the expansion of dual-use defence and security capabilities in shipbuilding and marine engineering, alongside the establishment of specialised maritime industrial clusters integrated into a nationwide production network.
Reaffirming the Party and State’s commitment, President Lâm said Việt Nam would pursue an ecosystem-based, focused and disciplined approach to maritime industrial development, with the ultimate goal of strengthening the nation’s ability to harness its maritime potential, modernise its water transport system and enhance its global competitiveness in the years ahead.
