The Vietnam logistics sector has to upgrade infrastructure and connectivity as well as supply chains to boost efficiency and economic value with the country’s annual trade nearing $1 trillion.
As trade grows, systemic bottlenecks are becoming increasingly evident throughout transport networks, warehousing, ports, and border gates, as well as industrial zones. Experts emphasize the importance of shifting from a piecemeal, project-by-project approach to a more strategic management approach centered around trade corridors and integrated supply chains.
In this model the state focuses on the development of institutions, regulations, strategic planning, and basic connectivity, and enterprises build integrated service capabilities.
Tran Thanh Hai, Deputy Director General of the Import-Export Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said that growing production, market expansion, and international integration are pushing demand for logistics up. In import-export, logistics directly impacts the time of delivery of products, the performance of contracts, and the costs of products.
Hai stressed that as the import-export turnover continues to grow toward the 1-trillion-USD mark, the demand for logistics services will remain large, so logistics capacity needs to be upgraded accordingly.
This direction also fits the development of a modern multimodal logistics system linking seaports, border gates, airports, railroads, motorways, and industrial parks, as well as economic corridors. Logistics is therefore progressively viewed not only as a service sector but also as a factor for national competitiveness.
The Vietnam logistics sector costs are now estimated at 16-17% of GDP, higher than the target of 12-15% by 2035, indicating much room for improvement. But if you want to lower costs, you have to tackle structural bottlenecks, not just lower freight rates.
Thanh Hoa, the central province, is a case in point. It has a major seaport, the Nghi Son Economic Zone, roads, railroads, waterways, and Tho Xuan Airport, but more than 74% of its freight is still dependent on roads. There are no direct links to key ports and industrial parks by rail, and dedicated air cargo hubs are yet to emerge.
The vice chairman of the Thanh Hoa Stone Association, Tran Nhu Tuan, said policies and infrastructure should be built on the basis of actual transport needs. The province has advantages of seaports, waterways, and cargo sources, but without appropriate transport solutions, these cannot be translated into competitiveness.
Transport policy and infrastructure should be demand-driven, and the only measure of success should be the actual reduction in shipping costs and transit times.
At the sectoral level, Hai named inadequate synchronization and connectivity issues among transport modes, localities, and businesses as major roadblocks. Besides roads, Vietnam needs to build warehouses, logistics centers, inland container depots, and rail and waterway transport, as well as container-handling capacities.
They also need to shift from individual services to integrated solutions, using technology and getting more involved in supply chain management, he said.
It is well to be noted that digital transformation, data, and green logistics are becoming more competitive capabilities when considering global supply chain disruptions, he said. An official logistics data system will assist management agencies in detecting bottlenecks and sectors with high costs and allow businesses to better manage vehicles, warehouses, and orders as well as transport, he stressed.
Hai added that the ministry has issued a plan of action to carry out the Vietnam Logistics Services Development Strategy for 2025-2035, with a vision to 2050, and is collaborating with localities to evaluate conditions and determine priorities.
No single logistics model can be applied to all localities due to the differences in location, sources of cargo, and infrastructure. Therefore, ministries and sectors should improve inter-regional coordination, data sharing, and integrated planning while prioritizing major freight corridors, multimodal transport, and logistics centers connected with production areas, industrial parks, and seaports, as well as border gates.
In the final analysis, the effectiveness of policy should be judged by measurable improvements in cargo flows, including lower costs, faster delivery times, greater utilization of multimodal transport, and higher value preserved by Vietnamese businesses. The 1-trillion-USD trade milestone is therefore not only an indicator of trade magnitude but also an assessment of national logistics capacity.
