Prosperity tops Vietnamese youths' priority list

The Star

24-05-2025

ON April 30, 1975, Vu Dang Toan commanded the first tank to smash through the gate of Saigon's Independence Palace.
After years of war, he was there for its bitter end – the full surrender.
As helicopters carried away the last Americans, South Vietnam's soldiers scattered, leaving behind their uniforms and boots.
'I'm proud,' Toan later reflected, 'that as a soldier, I completed the mission.'
Fifty years on, Toan is far from the battlefields of Saigon. Now living comfortably near Hanoi, surrounded by rice fields, he's witnessed Vietnam's dramatic transformation.
In his home, a photo of his tank at the palace's gates hangs on the wall.
Sitting beside his 14-year-old grandson Dang Hoang Anh, the stark contrast between their lives is evident.
A family visiting the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. — Hannah Reyes Morales/The New York Times
Anh dreams of studying in Canada and making money, free from the worries of his grandfather's generation.
'My grandparents' generation, they had to go to war. Now we don't worry about that. We worry about school and jobs,' Anh says.
The Vietnam War was a complex conflict – a fight for nationalism, for ideological dominance between socialism in the North and capitalism in the South, and a tragic chapter for both the Vietnamese and the Americans.
Today, however, ideology has largely faded, replaced by pragmatic progress.
Vietnam has transformed from a war-torn nation to a growing middle-income country.
The communist state that once defined it has evolved into a hybrid system, blending free-market principles with state control.
Major multinationals, like Nike and Apple, have turned the country into an export powerhouse.
A young girl watching excitedly as kites fly overhead in a field adjacent to skyscrapers in Ho Chi Minh City. — Hannah Reyes Morales/The New York Times
This shift began in the late 1980s when the country opened up its economy. By embracing industrialisation and higher-­tech manufacturing, Vietnam is now a rising player in Asia's economic sphere.
Yet, the country faces challenges as global trade dynamics shift.
The US-China trade war has dampened investment and slowed economic growth, while Vietnam's population, which once fuelled the 'demographic dividend' of youthful labour, is rapidly ageing.
Still, optimism remains high.
In the past few decades, poverty has plummeted. Less than 4% of the population now lives below the national poverty line, and per capita income has soared six-fold since 2000.
The country's social media presence is growing, reflecting the aspirations of a younger generation eager to engage with global culture.
But beneath the surface of Vietnam's growing economy, there are concerns.
In cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, air pollution is now a major problem. Coal still supplies much of the country's electricity, and unsustainable farming practices have taken a toll on the environment, particularly in the Mekong Delta.
Le Hoang Phuc, 25, from the Mekong Delta, recalls a time when the area was abundant with fish, but now pollution has left it desolate.
'Today we have more trash than fish,' he says.
His family now practises organic farming, but Phuc acknowledges that broader systemic changes are needed.
A woman recording a video of herself selling coats at a shop in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. It has been 50 years since the end of the Vietnam War. Most of the country's 100 million people were born after the fighting stopped and have seen Vietnam transform. — Hannah Reyes Morales/The New York Times
'We need stricter laws, garbage trucks for rural areas,' he adds. 'We need to reclaim a community mindset.'
Vietnam's economic ambitions are tempered by environmental degradation, yet a new cultural movement is gaining momentum.
More young professionals are embracing meditation and spirituality at places like the Giac Ngo Pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City, where modern concerns like consumerism and stress are challenged through ancient practices.
Religion, too, is making a resurgence.
Catholic seminaries are producing more young priests, and faith-based communities are increasingly popular.
For many, this return to traditional values represents a shift from the Marxist ideologies that dominated Vietnam for decades.
Yet, Vietnam remains a one-party state, and any challenge to the system is met with consequences.
A boat on a river near Can Tho in Vietnam's Mekong Delta. — Hannah Reyes Morales/The New York Times
This creates a paradox – a country that embraces growth and global engagement while suppressing dissent and alternative ideas.
As the country's population grows older, there are new challenges in sustaining its economy.
Workers like Phan Van Du, a 40-year-old factory employee, are no longer the exception.
Vietnam's youth-driven workforce is becoming harder to sustain, with many companies looking further afield to find workers.
These rising costs, coupled with intense international competition, could stymie future growth.
The question that looms large for Vietnam's future is what comes next.
In his 1946 interview, the country's most famous revolutionary, Ho Chi Minh, said that economic independence would be harder to achieve than political indepen­dence – a sentiment that remains true today.
The path forward may be marked by greater global integration, but it's uncertain whether Vietnam can overcome the demographic and economic obstacles in its way.
A merchant waits for customers at her shop in Hanoi. Globalisation and capitalism have lifted Vietnam to new heights, but complaints about inequality, development and environmental dangers are increasing. — Hannah Reyes Morales/The New York Times
The legacy of war is still felt across the country. While reconciliation with the United States has largely succeeded, the internal wounds from the conflict remain.
Families still search for the bodies of lost loved ones, and the narratives of the war remain controversial, especially regarding the suffering and violence faced by those on both sides of the conflict.
In an essay on national reconciliation, Vietnam's leader, To Lam, acknowledged that healing could only happen through accepting different perspectives, including those of the Vietnamese who fought for the South.
However, internal reconciliation remains a slow process, and the legacy of the war continues to shape the national identity. — ©2025 The New York Times Company
This article originally appeared in The New York Times