With a rich history spanning nearly 330 years of formation and development, backed by a solid industrial foundation and synchronously invested strategic transport infrastructure, Dong Nai City is entering a new era of development. The city aims to transform into a key national growth pole and an international integration gateway.
A corner of Dong Nai Port.
A Solid Industrial Foundation
Dong Nai has long been recognized as the industrial “capital” of the country. Originating from the Bien Hoa 1 Industrial Park—the earliest industrial park established in Vietnam in 1963—Dong Nai City has now established 58 industrial parks. Among these, 43 industrial parks are fully operational with a total area of over 14,600 hectares, attracting more than 2,255 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects from 51 countries and territories, with a total registered capital exceeding USD 43 billion.
Industry in Dong Nai acts as a pillar and the primary driving force for local socio-economic development, making substantial contributions to the nation. The industrial-construction and service sectors account for over 81% of Dong Nai’s economic structure. In this new phase, Dong Nai City aims to become a modern industrial-urban-service city.
In this new phase, Dong Nai City aims to become a modern industrial-urban-service city. To contribute to this strategic direction, Sonadezi Corporation, a pioneer and leader in industrial park (IP) development in Dong Nai, stated that it is actively expanding its industrial land bank, developing green and smart IPs, and prioritizing high-quality projects that can radiate value to promote the sustainable development of Dong Nai City.
From its initial operation of simply providing IP infrastructure in the early 1990s, Sonadezi has successfully developed a large-scale industrial-urban-service ecosystem. This creates a robust competitive advantage by offering comprehensive turnkey packages to investors.
Sonadezi’s current ecosystem comprises 12 operational IPs alongside a diverse chain of products and services, including port services, clean water supply, waste and wastewater treatment, construction, building materials, and petroleum. Simultaneously, the Sonadezi system develops urban areas, social housing, golf courses, office rentals, and high-quality human resource training.
Currently, Sonadezi is accelerating the utilization of vacant land and ready-built factories for leasing across several IPs, while constructing infrastructure for the Long Phuoc 1 Industrial Cluster to bring it into operation in 2026. Concurrently, Sonadezi is sourcing and developing new projects in the northern region of Dong Nai City.
Sonadezi’s development orientation is to continuously enhance both the scale and quality of its industrial-urban-service ecosystem
Alongside the objective of effectively managing and operating 4,600 hectares of land in existing IPs and investing in new ones, Sonadezi plans to expand its investments into urban infrastructure, social housing, and service sectors, contributing to a sustainable development ecosystem for Dong Nai City.
Long Thanh Industrial Park, one of the typical projects of the Sonadezi system in Dong Nai city.
Dong Nai City has determined that in this new era, its primary economic pillar will remain industrial development, but with a strict focus on high-tech and green development. New industrial parks must strictly adhere to green, eco-friendly, and smart models. For existing industrial parks, Dong Nai requires transitions to meet environmental, green, and sustainable standards.
According to Ms. Truong Thi Huong Binh, Director of the Dong Nai City Department of Finance, Dong Nai possesses the advantage of an extensive land bank, which is highly favorable for establishing new industrial parks.
Dong Nai City will review, supplement, and transition traditional industrial parks into Eco-Industrial Parks (EIPs); specialized industrial parks (aerospace, automotive, Halal); high-tech industrial parks (semiconductors, AI); supporting industrial parks; and dedicated industrial parks tailored for countries with large-scale investment projects in Dong Nai, such as South Korea and Japan.
Currently, Dong Nai City is accelerating the execution of new industrial parks to create a new industrial and logistics growth pole, connecting directly with Long Thanh International Airport.
Infrastructure as a Launchpad
Dong Nai is situated at a “strategic intersection” of the entire Southern region, serving as a gateway connecting to Ho Chi Minh City, a bridge between the Southeast region, the Central Highlands, and the South-Central Coast, while exerting a spillover effect on the Mekong Delta.
With its strategic location, Dong Nai City has become the industrial-service-logistics hub of the Southeast region and an international trading gateway linked to Long Thanh International Airport and the Cai Mep-Thi Vai seaport system. It also serves as a vital connection node for the Trans-Asian economic corridor and the Central Highlands.
Dong Nai is currently one of the few localities in Vietnam that integrates all 5 modes of transportation: road, rail, inland waterway, maritime, and air. Long Thanh International Airport, scheduled to commence operations at the end of 2026, is expected to serve as a launchpad for this region to transform into the “gateway of Asia”. The synergy of these new driving forces will form the foundation for Dong Nai City to shift its growth model from traditional industries to an international logistics, free trade, aviation service, and high-tech industrial hub.
Long Thanh Airport is expected to operate at the end of 2026. In the photo, the first flight at Long Thanh airport on the evening of December 15, 2025.
A key highlight is the planning of the 43,000-hectare Long Thanh airport urban area linked to the Dong Nai River development corridor, alongside a Free Trade Zone spanning nearly 7,500 hectares. This will serve as a vital growth pole in the southern part of the city, attracting strategic investors and high-quality human resources, providing momentum for double-digit GRDP growth in 2026 and the subsequent period.
Along with Long Thanh International Airport, the network of seaports, expressways, and ring roads being established in the area will become a leverage for Dong Nai to thrive in the nation’s new era.
With a methodical approach, long-term vision, and high responsibility, Dong Nai prioritizes transport routes connecting to Long Thanh International Airport, inner-city connections, and routes linking Dong Nai with Ho Chi Minh City to bind dynamic economic zones and expand development space.
A new milestone across the consecutive years of 2025 and 2026—identified by Dong Nai City as “transport infrastructure years”—includes the commencement of several strategic bridges over the Dong Nai River to establish direct connections with Ho Chi Minh City. Dong Nai’s consecutive commencement of major bridge projects across the Dong Nai River, namely Cat Lai and Long Hung, not only solves the transportation problem but also activates an entirely new development space.
The consecutive commencement of major bridge projects crossing the Dong Nai River, namely Cat Lai and Long Hung, will not only solve Dong Nai City’s transportation puzzle but also trigger an entirely new development space.
According to Nguyen Kim Long, Permanent Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Dong Nai City, the locality is focusing on resolving difficulties and obstacles by tackling the root causes of bottlenecks, rather than dealing with them on a piecemeal, case-by-case basis.
First, it is essential to finalize the master plan and reorganize the development space toward a modern, polycentric model with clear functional zoning. This involves closely linking urban areas, industry, services, logistics, airports, seaports, ecological agriculture, and development corridors.
The city will accelerate strategic infrastructure projects, especially expressways, ring roads, and connectivity axes linking to Long Thanh Airport, seaports, industrial zones, urban areas, and dynamic economic regions. Infrastructure is meant not only to relieve immediate traffic congestion but also to open new development spaces.
Dong Nai City will strongly shift its growth model and restructure industrial zones to be greener, smarter, and more high-tech. Priority will be given to projects with high technology content and high added value that are less labor-intensive and environmentally friendly. Concurrently, the city will vigorously develop logistics, trade, services, and the Long Thanh airport urban area.
