Vietnam’s total forest area surpassed 14.97 million hectares in 2025, reflecting continued efforts to protect and expand green coverage nationwide. The latest figures also highlight variations across regions and the balance between natural and planted forests, offering a clearer picture of the country’s forestry development.
As technology advances at fast speed, 2026 is expected to mark a new phase of cybercrime, with criminals increasingly exploiting AI tools such as deepfakes, voice cloning and virtual personas to carry out ever more sophisticated impersonation scams. In this evolving landscape, prevention goes beyond simply verifying information, it requires strict and reliable authentication processes.
The Government Office on March 31 issued a notice conveying the conclusions of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha at the 33rd meeting of the Steering Committee for Combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing, underscoring the need for urgent and comprehensive measures to address shortcomings identified by the European Commission (EC).
Vietnam’s manufacturing sector showed signs of slowing momentum in March as sharply rising input costs, largely driven by tensions in the Middle East, weighed on demand and production activity while pushing selling prices to their fastest pace in nearly 15 years.
According to the Hanoi Police, after three months in operation (since December 13, 2025), a system of nearly 2,000 AI-powered cameras across the city has detected and handled more than 19,300 traffic safety violations, gradually helping to ease congestion bottlenecks in the capital.
As of March 8, Hai Phong managed 786 fishing vessels measuring 6m or longer. Authorities reported that fleet oversight has been fully standardised, with all vessels registered, inspected, licensed, and integrated into the national fisheries database (Vnfishbase).
The growth rate was higher than the 7.07% recorded in the same period last year, reflecting the economy’s resilience, enterprises’ adaptability and providing a solid foundation to achieve full-year growth targets, said Nguyen Thi Huong, director of the National Statistics Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Finance.
Researchers from the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City have proposed a sandbox model targeting high value-added sectors while maintaining strict risk controls.
AI-generated videos have reached new levels of sophistication, using deepfake technology to mimic real people, making them difficult for viewers to detect. Still, viewers can rely on certain visual cues to identify videos created using AI and detect manipulated content.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has approved temporary tax reductions on petrol, oil and aviation fuel, with the environmental protection tax set at 0 VND per litre from March 26 to April 15, 2026.
Party General Secretary To Lam has signed Politburo Resolution No. 02 on “Building and developing Hanoi in the new era,” setting out concrete targets for each development phase. For the 2026–2030 period, average GRDP growth is targeted at over 11% per year. By 2030, GRDP is projected to exceed 113 billion USD, with per capita income reaching at least 12,000 USD.
Party General Secretary To Lam on March 17 signed Resolution No. 02-NQ/TW issued by the Politburo on building and developing Hanoi in the new era, setting out long-term strategic orientations and development targets for the capital.
Vietnam’s 10 outstanding young faces of 2025 were honoured in Hanoi on March 25, 2026 at a ceremony held by the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union Central Committee and the Vietnam Young Talent Support Fund.
As one of the Southeast Asian nations with the highest number of ASEAN Heritage Parks, Vietnam now has 16 recognised sites. This leading contribution to the region’s ASEAN Heritage Parks network underscores Vietnam’s significant efforts and commitment to biodiversity conservation.
Xuan Thuy National Park in the northern province of Ninh Binh has been recognised as an ASEAN Heritage Park. It is a coastal wetland reserve and Vietnam’s first Ramsar site, known for its rich biodiversity and numerous rare waterbird species. The designation opens up development opportunities while also placing higher demands on conservation and the promotion of its natural values.
At a press conference on March 21, 2026, the National Election Council announced the composition of the 16th National Assembly, highlighting representation of women, ethnic minorities, non-Party members and younger deputies, as well as a high proportion of members with postgraduate qualifications.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and a high-ranking delegation of Vietnam pay an official visit to the Russian Federation from March 22 – 25. The visit is made at the invitation of Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) disbursed in Vietnam during the first two months of 2026 is estimated at 3.21 billion USD, up 8.8% year-on-year and the highest level recorded for the period in the past five years, according to the National Statistics Office under the Ministry of Finance.
In the first two months of 2026, Vietnam recorded nearly 35,500 newly registered enterprises, with total registered capital of about 313.7 trillion VND (12 billion USD) and a workforce exceeding 167,500 employees.
In the first two months of 2026, Vietnam welcomed nearly 4.7 million international visitors, up 18.1% compared to the same period last year, according to the National Statistics Office under the Ministry of Finance.
Vietnam recorded nine export items surpassing 1.5 billion USD in turnover in the first two months of 2026, accounting for more than 70% of the country’s total exports. Among them, electronics, computers and components led with 17.69 billion USD.
Amid increasingly complex developments in the military conflict in the Middle East since February 28, 2026, the Vietnamese Government has rolled out urgent measures to ensure energy security.
The recent inauguration of the Vietnam National Space Centre at Hoa Lac Hi-tech Park in Hanoi serves as one of the leading space centres in Southeast Asia. It is the first high-tech project funded by Japan’s ODA loans.
On March 15, 2026, voters nationwide cast their ballots to elect deputies to the 16th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels for the 2026–2031 term. After the vote, the National Election Council and local election committees continue key procedures to complete the electoral process in accordance with the law.
During the period, 36 new overseas projects were granted investment certificates with total registered capital from Vietnamese investors reaching 532.4 million USD, up 2.3 times compared to the same period last year. In addition, three projects adjusted their capital with an additional 7.8 million USD, 1.5 times higher than a year earlier.
To enhance public communication and promote digital transformation in election work, the Hanoi chapter of the Vietnam Fatherland Front has introduced a digital map of information on the election of deputies to the 16th National Assembly and the Hanoi People’s Council for the 2026–2031 term. The digital map helps expand the application of information technology and digital transformation in providing services and information to voters across the city.
Election day for deputies to the 16th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels for the 2026–2031 tenure has been set for March 15, 2026. Under the regulations, voting takes place from 7.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m. on the same day. Depending on local conditions, the Election Committee may decide to start voting earlier, but not before 5.00 a.m., or end later, but no later than 9.00 p.m. on the same day.
Decision No. 173/QD-TTg dated January 27, 2026, issued by the Prime Minister approving the strategy for promoting Vietnam’s image abroad for 2026–2030 with a vision to 2045, identifies international communication as a strategic soft-power tool serving national development. The strategy aims to position Vietnam among Asia’s leading countries in terms of national brand and image by 2045, while striving to rank in the top three in ASEAN and top 30 in the Global Soft Power Index.
