From September 24 to 27, 2024, the 5th edition of the Ho Chi Minh City Economic Forum 2024 (HEF 2024) took place, with the theme: “Industrial Transformation: A New Engine for Sustainable Growth in Ho Chi Minh City.”
The forum was organized to promote Ho Chi Minh City’s industrial transformation program, focusing on five main objectives:
(i) Analyzing global trends in industrial transformation towards the application of modern technologies, emission reduction, and sustainable development.
(ii) Seeking solutions to build and enhance awareness, state management effectiveness, and business applicability aligned with the city’s developmental goals and strategies. This includes focusing on industrial transformation, digital transformation, green transformation, new energy, and transitional energy to foster economic restructuring linked to growth model renewal for green and sustainable development.
(iii) Sharing lessons learned and best practices in governance and execution during industrial transformation, providing policy insights for developing countries like Vietnam and cities like Ho Chi Minh City.
(iv) Launching the Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) in Ho Chi Minh City, established in collaboration with the World Economic Forum (WEF).
(v) Clarifying cooperation and investment opportunities, both domestic and international, in the city’s and region’s priority industrial sectors.
This event brought together local and international leaders, government officials, policymakers, experts, scholars, and representatives of the business community. Participants engaged in policy dialogues with the Prime Minister, contributed insights during the plenary session, and took part in three parallel discussion sessions addressing the topics mentioned above.
Following the success of HEF 2023, the Italy-Vietnam Foundation organized the participation of Italian experts in the 2024 edition.
Upon the recommendation of the Italy-Vietnam Foundation, Mario Jorizzo, Director at ENEA, and Massimiliano Costa, Director of the Po Delta Park in Emilia-Romagna, were invited by the City of Ho Chi Minh to participate in HEF 2024 as experts. Additionally, Alessandra De Marco was selected to present a paper on the forum’s key themes.
