National Entrepreneurs in a New Era: “Create Wealth with Integrity, Leave a Legacy through Service”
An interview with Dr. Pham Ha – Chairman & CEO, LuxGroup®
(By Industry & Trade Newspaper)
Introduction
Nearly four decades after Doi Moi (Renovation), Vietnam has nurtured a dynamic, resilient, and increasingly sophisticated community of entrepreneurs who now stand at the forefront of the nation’s socio-economic development.
In 1999, the country’s first Enterprise Law came into force, formally recognizing and protecting the people’s right to do business and unleashing a nationwide entrepreneurial spirit. Six years later, on October 13, 2004, the Prime Minister established Vietnamese Entrepreneurs’ Day—a historic milestone acknowledging the role, status, and contributions of Vietnam’s national entrepreneurs to national development.
Since then, every October 13 has been more than a day of appreciation; it is a moment to reflect on our journey of mindset reform—from a “permit-granting” mentality to the rule of law, from a centrally planned system to a socialist-oriented market economy. It is also a day to honor the spirit of the “doanh chủ dân tộc”—national entrepreneurs who dare to think, to act, and to take responsibility, placing service to the nation at the heart of value creation.
On this occasion, Industry & Trade Newspaper speaks with Dr. Pham Ha, Chairman and CEO of LuxGroup®, a pioneer in heritage-based tourism and a representative face of Vietnam’s modern entrepreneurial generation, to review the private sector’s progress and to share his reflections and aspirations on the journey to “build Vietnamese brands with global stature.”
“Today’s Vietnamese entrepreneurs are a generation of real enterprise and self-reliance”
After nearly 40 years of Doi Moi (1986–2025), Vietnamese businesses and entrepreneurs have advanced remarkably. How do you view this transformation?
I believe Vietnam’s entrepreneurs today are a generation of real enterprise and self-reliance, relentlessly proving the nation’s intellect and mettle. From modest beginnings, we now see private groups with regional reach, capable of competing in international markets.
What I value most is that they grew through hardship—overcoming constraints in capital, institutions, and legal certainty—yet persevered in their aspiration to serve the country. That is the image of the national entrepreneur: doing business not only for profit but for the mission of building a prosperous, happy nation.
A new institutional fabric for the spirit of national entrepreneurship
An entrepreneur once said: “Doing big business in Vietnam is like crossing a monkey bridge—opportunity on one side, legal risk on the other. Cronies are fattened to be slaughtered.”
It is a pithy line that captures the condition of business in a system that has not grown in step with the market. Many Vietnamese entrepreneurs still wear an institutional ‘coat’ that is too tight. After nearly 40 years of reform, that coat has not yet been tailored to match the private sector’s ambitions for a modern, fully fledged, and integrated market economy.
Vietnamese entrepreneurs are resilient and creative, yet many must still “self-innovate” to survive: scarce capital, among the highest bank lending rates, uneven playing fields, limited access to land, and weak legal certainty. They learn to dodge, wait, and workaround—and they move forward, but grow too slowly. Such a system breeds compliance-avoidance, not path-breaking leadership.
The private sector remains small, fragile, and under-protected. Those who do right still feel compelled to “ask” for peace of mind. When the law is blurry and power arbitrary, talent cannot compound into national strength.
As the institutions, so the entrepreneurs.
A “permit-granting” regime produces cunning operators.
A transparent, rules-based regime produces principled, inventive, and growth-minded leaders.
Vietnamese entrepreneurs have done their part—courageous, persistent, unwilling to give up.
Now the system must do its part: protect the righteous, encourage the authentic, and honor the pioneers.
The difference between a national entrepreneur and a crony entrepreneur lies in national spirit. The national entrepreneur enriches himself but also strengthens the country. The crony clings to power to survive; the national entrepreneur clings to true value to grow. A nation becomes truly strong only when its entrepreneurs grow by rule of law and trust, not by sheer endurance.
“You cannot have strong enterprises in a weak institutional environment”
Resolution No. 68-NQ/TW sets out the goal of building a sustainable, highly competitive Vietnamese business community, deeply integrated regionally and globally. What is your view?
I hold Resolution 68 in high regard. It marks a strategic vision that places enterprises and entrepreneurs at the center of national prosperity.
Yet to realize it, institutions must grow with enterprises. You cannot have strong enterprises within a weak framework. To nurture “economic eagles,” we need an open, transparent, and fair legal sky where principled entrepreneurs feel confident to devote themselves.
We need a generation of entrepreneurs with clear conscience, steady resolve, and long vision—who dare to think, act, and be accountable. Only then will the spirit of Resolution 68 truly take root and become a driving force for Vietnam to leap forward in an era of integration and green transition.
“Sustainability is not only economics—it is culture”
What additional mechanisms and policies are needed to translate Resolution 68 into practice and help enterprises grow greener and more sustainably?
First, reduce institutional burdens and compliance costs. A transparent, fair, and facilitative business environment is the essential oxygen for enterprise survival and growth.
Second, invest boldly in knowledge and people—especially green talent development, ESG competencies, digital governance, and organizational culture.
Third, deploy green finance policies, preferential credit, and substantive innovation funds to encourage green transition, clean production, and sustainable growth.
Finally, build a Vietnamese entrepreneurial culture grounded in business ethics, a spirit of service, and national pride. Sustainability is not only about economics; it is culture—the way we create wealth without losing ourselves.
“Create wealth with integrity, leave a legacy through service”
On Vietnamese Entrepreneurs’ Day (October 13), what message would you like to send to the business community nationwide?
My deepest gratitude and respect to all who work tirelessly—creating, persevering, and building—day and night.
Let us create wealth with integrity, succeed through true value, authentic products, and real communities—and leave a legacy through service.
Entrepreneurs are not only producers of wealth; they are builders of happiness and social trust. I have always believed: entrepreneurs are the soul of the economy and the vanguard of a prosperous nation.
At LuxGroup®, we choose to grow through heritage tourism, binding business with culture, art, and people, guided by the credo “Luxury is Culture – Delivering Happiness.” I am convinced that every Vietnamese enterprise—large or small—can help shape a strong, humane, and proudly Vietnamese nation by 2045.