The Vietnam Industrial Park Summit 2026 revealed a striking consensus: as the cost advantage narrows, the competitiveness of industrial parks will be decided by ecosystem quality, speed of execution, and workforce readiness.

Held in Hai Phong this July, the Vietnam Industrial Park Summit 2026 took place under the professional sponsorship of the Central Party's Commission for Policy and Strategy, bringing together policymakers, experts, and industrial park developers to discuss the new growth drivers of Vietnam's industrial sector.

Notably, despite approaching the topic from different angles, speakers converged on one conclusion: the competitive model for Vietnam's industrial parks is entering a new phase.

According to Mr. Truong Minh, Deputy Director General of the Foreign Investment Agency (Ministry of Finance), competition to attract FDI today no longer hinges mainly on incentives or production costs, but on the quality of the ecosystem. This requires industrial parks to offer more than land and technical infrastructure. They must integrate logistics, clean energy, digital infrastructure, skilled workforce, and business support services.

Echoing this view, many speakers at the forum noted that Vietnam's objective is also shifting from quantity-driven FDI to high-quality FDI: projects with strong technology content, higher value-add, and greater spillover benefits for the domestic economy. Achieving this requires industrial parks to be developed as ecosystems, not merely production spaces.

WHEN COST IS NO LONGER THE ONLY ADVANTAGE

These shifts mirror what IDICO has observed first-hand in its engagement with both domestic and international businesses.

In its presentation on "FDI Promotion and Unlocking Capital for Industrial Park Development," IDICO's representative shared that conversations with FDI investors and manufacturers today rarely center on land rental rates or labor costs, as they once did.

"Cost may be what gets Vietnam onto the shortlist. But it is the non-cost value that keeps FDI enterprises committed for the long term and choosing Vietnam as their investment destination."

According to IDICO, businesses are now paying closer attention to logistics connectivity, project execution speed, technical infrastructure quality, stable energy supply, the surrounding service ecosystem, and, critically, the ability to secure workforce once the factory becomes operational.

THREE PILLARS OF INDUSTRIAL PARK COMPETITIVE STRENGTH

Drawing on its experience developing and operating 14 industrial parks nationwide, IDICO believes the competitiveness of industrial parks in this new phase rests on three core pillars.

First, operational capability.

A modern industrial park must offer more than clean, ready land. It must guarantee a comprehensive ecosystem to support production, from technical infrastructure and energy to environmental treatment and business support services. The value of an industrial park is therefore no longer measured in land area, but in its ability to help businesses operate stably and grow over the long term.

Second, speed of execution.

In a globally competitive landscape, the time it takes to bring a factory online is an increasingly decisive advantage. According to IDICO, reforming investment procedures, expanding decentralization to qualified infrastructure developers, and scaling ready-built factories and warehouses can significantly shorten a business's time to market.

Third, workforce.

If infrastructure is what attracts investment, people are what determine whether businesses stay.

This view was echoed by Mr. Tran Van Nam, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Semiconductor Alliance, who described a high-quality workforce as the economy's "soft infrastructure." Localities and industrial parks that build a strong workforce ecosystem will hold a clear advantage in competing for high-tech industries.

Drawing on its work with FDI enterprises, IDICO believes the real challenge today is not a shortage of labor, but a shortage of labor with the right skills. This calls for closer collaboration between businesses, training institutions, and local government to build training models aligned with real market demand: enabling companies to recruit and bring factories into operation as soon as projects are completed.

FROM INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT TO ECOSYSTEM DEVELOPMENT

A key point in IDICO's presentation was the shift from a traditional industrial park development model to an industrial ecosystem development model.

Under this model, IDICO develops four pillars in parallel: industrial real estate, energy, industrial park services, and residential-urban development to create a comprehensive ecosystem that supports production, operations, and the daily lives of experts and workers.

Alongside expanding its industrial land bank, IDICO is also investing in ready-built factories and warehouses, exploring eco-industrial park models, and advancing smart, sustainable operating solutions.

From operational experience, IDICO also recommended continued reform of investment procedures, broader decentralization to capable infrastructure developers, and mechanisms that allow businesses to participate more directly in workforce development to support FDI attraction.

THE FUTURE OF INDUSTRIAL PARKS WILL BE MEASURED BY VALUE CREATED

The forum closed on a shared conviction: the competitiveness of Vietnam's industrial parks will no longer be determined primarily by rental prices, but by the ability to build a comprehensive ecosystem – one where infrastructure, services, workforce, and the investment environment together create long-term value for businesses.

With more than 25 years developing 14 industrial parks nationwide, a strategy to expand an industrial ecosystem, and a clear direction toward next-generation industrial parks, IDICO is steadily turning this approach into reality, committed to advancing the quality of FDI inflows and the industrial competitiveness of Vietnam.