On May 15, 2026, marking exactly one year since the issuance of Resolution 68-NQ/TW on private-sector development, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, or VCCI), together with beverage giant Tan Hiep Phat, officially released the 2025 Vietnam Private Economy Report and the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI).
The event was more than an annual data announcement. Organizers described it as a milestone reflecting a broader shift in local governance thinking and national economic strategy as Vietnam enters a new development phase.
PCI 2.0 and BPI: A New Dual Framework for Measuring Economic Governance
Vietnam is currently undergoing sweeping administrative reforms, including the consolidation of its provinces and cities from 63 units to 34, alongside a transition toward a two-tier local government model. At the same time, the country is institutionalizing a policy direction that places the private sector at the center of economic growth.
To align with these structural changes, VCCI introduced PCI 2.0 — a major overhaul of the Provincial Competitiveness Index after more than two decades of use.
Where the original PCI mainly measured the business environment, PCI 2.0 evaluates the broader “private-sector development ecosystem” through nine component indexes and 98 indicators. The framework measures everything from market entry and access to resources to transparency, legal institutions, and the effectiveness of what VCCI calls a “development-oriented government.”
Speaking at the event, Associate Professor Dr. Ho Sy Hung, chairman of VCCI, said this was the first time Vietnam had published a standalone, comprehensive report dedicated entirely to the private economy.
According to the report, Vietnam’s private sector now includes more than one million businesses and over six million household enterprises, employing around 26 million workers — equivalent to 50.2% of the national workforce.
A major highlight was the debut of the Business Performance Index (BPI), which measures the real economic outcomes generated by businesses and their innovation capacity.
“If PCI measures institutional inputs, then BPI measures market outputs,” Dr. Hung explained.
The BPI consists of 23 indicators assessing the actual growth and innovation performance of enterprises. Together, PCI 2.0 and BPI create a two-dimensional assessment system that allows local governments not only to evaluate what policies they implement, but also the concrete results businesses achieve from them.
This year’s report drew on surveys from more than 10,000 entities nationwide, including 3,546 domestic private firms, 586 foreign-invested enterprises, and 1,001 household businesses across all 34 newly reorganized provinces and cities. Organizers described it as Vietnam’s most comprehensive private-sector survey in years.
Vietnam Officially Honors Its Top Five Economic Administrators
This year, VCCI also changed how the PCI results are presented. Instead of ranking provinces from first to 34th place, the organization grouped localities into six governance-quality tiers. The shift is intended to encourage provinces to learn from one another rather than focus solely on rankings.
Vietnam’s median PCI score in 2025 reached 63.90 out of 100, indicating that reform momentum remains steady nationwide.
The five provinces and cities recognized in the highest “Good Governance” category were: Bac Ninh, Da Nang, Hai Phong, Phu Tho, Quang Ninh
According to the report, these localities shared a common trait: balanced governance structures.
Bac Ninh led the nation in “development-oriented government” and low administrative compliance costs. Da Nang ranked first nationwide for market entry procedures. Hai Phong stood out with seven out of nine component indexes placing among the country’s top ten. Phu Tho ranked second nationally for access to resources, while Quang Ninh maintained strong performance in fair competition and development-oriented governance.
Meanwhile, under the new BPI rankings, the leading localities were: Ho Chi Minh City — 5.67 points; Hanoi — 5.41 points; Quang Ninh — 5.33 points
The national median BPI score stood at 4.20 points.
Dr. Hung also emphasized what he described as the “policy time lag” effect: governance quality in 2022 showed a strong correlation with economic performance outcomes in 2025.
“This confirms that today’s reform efforts require at least three years before they translate into profits and substantive business growth,” he said.
He added that Vietnam’s private sector has moved beyond a defensive phase and is now building internal strength, ready for rapid expansion if bottlenecks involving markets, capital access, and policy transparency can be resolved within the next 12 to 18 months.
Dr. Hung argued that to achieve Vietnam’s target of two million businesses by 2030, policymaking must shift away from a management mindset toward one focused on partnership and competitiveness-building.
The message of partnership was reinforced by the participation of private-sector companies such as Tan Hiep Phat as strategic partners of the reporting initiative.
Vietnamese enterprises are proactively joining hands with VCCI to help build a transparent business environment. It is not just a contribution of resources, but also a demonstration of commitment to shaping a sustainable future for the economy.
Mr. Nguyen Duy Hung — a member of the Board of Governance of Tan Hiep Phat, the only Vietnamese company ranked among Vietnam’s top five beverage companies — shared at the event:
“For Tan Hiep Phat Beverage Group, partnering with VCCI in the Vietnam Private Economic Report Program and the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) is not simply support for a research initiative. It is also a corporate responsibility to join hands in building a transparent, efficient, and modern business environment; contributing to enhancing the competitiveness of the private economic sector, localities, and the national economy, toward Vietnam’s goal of rapid and sustainable development in this new era.”
The 2025 PCI announcement, organizers said, marks the beginning of a new chapter for Vietnam’s private sector. Despite ongoing economic challenges, they expressed confidence that the new pair of indices, PCI 2.0 and BPI — combined with a nationwide commitment to reform — could unlock a new era of growth for Vietnamese enterprises and reinforce the private sector’s role as one of the country’s key economic drivers.