First, the lives of the majority of the population in Viet Nam have improved significantly. After nearly 40 years of Doi Moi, Viet Nam has effectively resolved the relationship between economic growth and cultural development, implemented social progress and equity. Development opportunities have been expanded to all economic sectors and all walks of life, encouraging and promoting the positivity, initiative and creativity of the people. GDP per capita in USD has increased continuously. From one of the countries with lowest GDP per capita in USD in 1988, which was at 86 USD/person/year , Viet Nam has left the group of low-income countries and become a middle-income country. In the period 2005 - 2010, GDP per capita reached 1,168 USD/person/year. In 2024, GDP per capita reached 4,700 USD, an increase of 377 USD compared to 2023 .
Second, in term of labor and employment, during the period of 1991-2000, 1 - 1.2 million jobs were created year-on-year. In the period 2001 - 2005, there were about 1.4 - 1.5 million jobs on average created in Viet Nam. In the period 2006 - 2010, this figure increased to 1.6 million jobs. In the period 2011 - 2020, Viet Nam created 500,000 more jobs year-on-year and the total number of jobs in 2020 reached 53.14 million. During the Covid-19 pandemic, labours in Viet Nam were negatively affected in various forms of job losses, alternate working shifts, reduced working hours and reduced income. However, the employment situation has recovered as Viet Nam’s labor market in 2024 regained its momentum, with 51.9 million employed, an increase of 585,100 workers (equivalent to an increase of 1.1%) compared to the previous year. Of which, urban areas saw a substantial boost, with 19.9 million workers, up 831,200 from the previous year, while rural employment dipped by 246,100 to 32 million.
Third, the poverty reduction in Viet Nam has achieved impressive results. In 2006, Viet Nam achieved the United Nations Millennium Development Goal on poverty reduction - 10-years ahead of schedule (2015). In 2015, the Vietnamese Government introduced a multidimensional poverty index (MPI) for the 2016-2020 period, marking a significant shift from income-based poverty measurement to a more holistic approach. Since then (2016-2020 and 2021-2025), poverty reduction has been established as one of the three national target programs. For the 2021-2025 period, Viet Nam aims to reduce the multidimensional poverty rate by 1-1.5% annually, with the poverty rate among ethnic minorities dropping by over 3% per year, 30% of poor districts, 30% of extremely disadvantaged communes getting rid of poverty and extremely disadvantaged status and the rate of poor households in poor districts decreasing by 4-5%/year. In addition, the specific policies of poverty reduction giving priority to vulnerable groups, ethnic minority groups, and extremely disadvantaged areas have also been issued, creating favorable conditions for these specific groups.
The national target program on sustainable poverty reduction for the period 2021 - 2025 is implemented nationwide, focusing on poor districts, disadvantaged communes. The income distribution in Viet Nam is kept within a relatively safe threshold compared to other countries with the same income bracket. Viet Nam’s poverty rate dropped rapidly, from 9.88% in 2015 to 1.93% in 2023. In 2024, the multidimensional poverty rate (including poor and near-poor households) was 4.06% - a decrease of 1.65% compared to 2023.
Fourth, education and human development is given special attention in Viet Nam. Education and training are identified as the top national policy. Viet Nam focused on completing the task of eliminating illiteracy, universalizing primary education (in 2000) and secondary education (in 2010). In the school year of 2023-2024, the rate of communes and districts meeting the standards for universalizing secondary education was 100%; 63/63 provinces and cities meet the standards for universalizing secondary education level 1 (reaching a rate of 100%). In addition, the rate of trained workers has increased steadily over the years, especially highly skilled workers, meeting the new requirements of the labor market. In 2024, the rate of trained workers was 69%, equivalent to nearly 38 million people. Recently, Viet Nam decided to exempt all tuition fees for students from kindergarten to high school nationwide since September 2025. As a result, Viet Nam’s HDI value has increased steadily and continuously over the past decades. From 1990 to 2023, Viet Nam’s HDI increased from 0.499 to 0.766, an impressive improvement of nearly 50%.
Fifth, Viet Nam has made significant progress in healthcare. In early 2025, Viet Nam’s healthcare system has been fully expanded, covering all regions of the country, with health insurance coverage reached 94.2% in 2024. Viet Nam has built a widespread healthcare network, with more than 13,000 healthcare facilities from central to local levels. Now, basic healthcare services are accessible to all, including the most disadvantaged and remote areas. Significant advances in preventive medicine have helped control and eliminate dangerous epidemics. Currently, the average life expectancy of Vietnamese people has reached 74.5 years, among the countries with high life expectancy in the region.
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