Unity creates strength, Hai Phong overcame storms and difficulties to reach the finish line in 2024 with remarkable achievements and imprints in socio-economic development, increasingly enhancing its position. This serves as a foundation for the city to step into a phase of acceleration, aiming for higher goals in 2025 with the theme “Expanding economic and urban space; completing specific mechanisms and policies; promoting green transformation and digital transformation.”
Remarkable Highlights
In 2024, the city's GRDP growth rate reached 11.01%, ranking third nationwide, marking 10 consecutive years of double-digit growth, a "miracle" during the renewal period that no other locality in the country has achieved. This achievement is even more meaningful as it vividly demonstrates the unity, resilience, and affection of Hai Phong people when facing difficulties, especially in dealing with Typhoon No. 3 with the principle that people's lives and health are the highest priority.
Hai Phong minimized damage to people and property, earning recognition and support from the public, high appreciation from the Central Government, and a certificate of merit from the Prime Minister. Typhoon No. 3, the strongest storm in the past 30 years, caused damage worth trillions of VND and severely affected the lives and production activities of residents and businesses. It led to a sharp decline in the industrial production index, and the city faced the risk of not achieving double-digit GRDP growth. However, the storm could not break the determination and resilience of Hai Phong people. Immediately after the storm passed, the City Party Committee held a meeting and issued a "command from the heart," striving at all costs to maintain growth above 10%.
To achieve this, the city reallocated its budget and resources to quickly recover from the storm, stabilize lives and resume production and business activities. The city chose key tasks and breakthrough points to assign responsibilities and implement them with the principle of "clear tasks, clear people, clear resources, clear timelines, clear responsibilities." With the unity and determination of the entire political system, people, and business community, Hai Phong was among the earliest localities to allocate the highest budget to help people in difficulty recover promptly after the storm. As a result, the city rebounded in the fourth quarter and achieved remarkable socio-economic results in 2024.
Not only maintaining double-digit growth, many economic indicators exceeded their targets. Notably, domestic revenue surpassed the plan by over VND 3,000 billion; foreign direct investment (FDI) attraction reached USD 4.7 billion, 2.35 times the target, continuing to lead the nation. In addition to economic achievements, in implementing the annual theme of strengthening social policy implementation, the city council passed and issued 16 resolutions, proposals, and projects on social welfare, public health, education, and vocational training. The city achieved its goal of eliminating poor households under national standards for the 2022-2025 period a year earlier than planned under the 16th Party Congress Resolution.
With outstanding achievements in socio-economic development, 2024 was also a vibrant and impressive year for the city's domestic and international activities. During the year, Hai Phong proudly welcomed two heads of state—the Presidents of Indonesia and Bulgaria—and received the Standing Committee of the Central Party of Laos, along with many visits by Politburo members and Central Party leaders. Leaders of many major global corporations also visited to explore cooperation and development opportunities. Most notably, the Party Executive Committee of Hai Phong welcomed and worked with General Secretary To Lam. For the first time in history, Bach Long Vi Island District was honored to host a visit from the General Secretary.
Setting Higher Growth Targets
Even more gratifying, General Secretary To Lam highly praised Hai Phong's development achievements, affirming that "Hai Phong has achieved accomplishments that many other localities in the same context and system have not been able to," while outlining six breakthrough development tasks and solutions for the city.
In 2025, Hai Phong aims for faster and more sustainable development, confidently striving to become "a second Singapore," as envisioned by General Secretary To Lam.
The city targets a GRDP growth rate of 12.5% in 2025, selecting a high-growth plan to achieve its goal of 13.5% average annual economic growth for the 2021-2030 period under the Hai Phong City Master Plan for 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, approved by the Prime Minister in Decision No. 1516 in 2023.
To achieve this target, the city sets higher economic indicators for 2025, such as a 17% increase in the industrial production index (IIP), total social investment reaching VND 240 trillion, total factor productivity (TFP) contributing 47% to growth, and attracting USD 4.5 billion in FDI. The city also aims to collect over VND 118 trillion in state budget revenue, including VND 51 trillion in domestic revenue and VND 62.7 trillion from import-export activities, creating resources for investment and social welfare.
Hai Phong enjoys new advantages and opportunities as Resolution No. 169 of the National Assembly on urban government organization in Hai Phong City and Resolution No. 1232 of the National Assembly Standing Committee on rearranging district and commune-level administrative units in Hai Phong City for the 2023-2025 period take effect on January 1, 2025. The city will implement a one-tier urban government model, establish Thuy Nguyen City and An Duong District, and reduce 50 commune-level administrative units. This breakthrough will enhance governance efficiency, streamline organizational structures, and reduce staff. Additionally, the establishment of the Southern Coastal Economic Zone will expand development space and maximize the city's potential and strengths.
To fully ultilize on these advantages and opportunities and achieve high-growth goals, at the year-end regular session of the city council, Chairman of the City People's Committee Nguyen Van Tung emphasized that the city would accelerate the establishment and implementation of industrial zones, key projects funded by the city budget, as well as private investments to expand development space and attract investments. Simultaneously, the city is focusing on collaborating with central ministries and agencies to research and propose special, groundbreaking mechanisms and policies, ensuring the timely submission to the National Assembly of a resolution to replace Resolution 35, and completing a proposal to establish a new-generation free trade zone.
These foundations will enable the city to enter a new phase, accelerating and breaking through toward higher goals.