Addressing the event, held by the Ministry of Science and Technology in coordination with the Hanoi People’s Committee, Deputy PM Dung said Politburo Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW identifies science and technology, innovation and national digital transformation as a top breakthrough and a key driver for developing modern productive forces, reforming production relations and renewing national governance.

Against this backdrop, innovation must not be viewed merely as an area requiring support, but as a driving force to be activated across the economy and society, he said.

According to the Deputy PM, innovation should raise productivity, improve the efficiency of capital and resource use, and create new products, services, industries and markets. For businesses, it should promote technological adoption and renewal, improve quality, cut costs, expand markets and enable deeper participation in value chains. For people, innovation should translate into better jobs, higher incomes, better products and services, and improved quality of life.

Vietnam has made notable progress in innovation capacity in recent years. The country ranked 43rd among 139 economies in the 2026 Global Innovation Index, up one place from 2025. Its innovation ecosystem now includes more than 4,000 innovative startups, organisations and individuals, around 208 venture capital funds and over 1,400 support organisations. Some 34.6% of businesses engage in innovation activities, while 20 science and technology exchanges are currently operating.

However, Deputy PM Dung noted that these achievements remain below the country’s development requirements and competitiveness goals. The proportion of domestic enterprises engaged in technological innovation remains very low. Many businesses remain concentrated in processing and assembly with low added value, while their capacity to master core technologies remains limited. The science and technology market and technology exchanges also need further development.

At the July 30 meeting of the Central Steering Committee on science and technology, innovation and digital transformation, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and President To Lam called on every ministry, sector and locality to become an innovation hub in its respective field.

Deputy PM Dung said this requires ministries and sectors to promote innovation in their respective areas, localities to use innovation to address development challenges, businesses to regard innovation as key to improving productivity and competitiveness, and research institutes and universities to bring knowledge and technology closer to practical needs, particularly those of businesses.

He stressed that Vietnam’s policy framework for science, technology and innovation has made important progress, providing a legal foundation for innovation, technology transfer and the commercialisation of research results. The focus now must shift from simply having innovation activities to delivering tangible innovation outcomes and gradually building a stronger national innovation ecosystem.

“Businesses must be placed at the centre of this process,” he said, noting that enterprises understand market demand, formulate practical requirements, invest resources, adopt and master technologies, organise production and bring products to consumers.

He called for stronger support for technological innovation in businesses and the development of the science and technology market, creating closer links between business demand and technology, expertise, finance, intellectual property, intermediaries and markets.

Innovation hubs should serve as connectors linking businesses, research institutes, universities, experts and investors, while focusing on practical strengths and needs, he said. Research institutes and universities should improve research quality, promote technology transfer and commercialisation, foster innovative startups and train high-quality human resources.

International cooperation in innovation should directly contribute to strengthening domestic technological capacity and enhancing Vietnam’s position in global innovation networks, the Deputy PM added.

At the event, delegates launched the National Innovation Day 2026, calling for greater joint efforts, connectivity and action to spread the spirit of innovation from State agencies to businesses, research institutes, universities and the wider community./.