Comrade Vuong Quoc Tuan, Member of the Party Central Executive Committee, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, and delegates attend the May “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” program on “Green agriculture and orientations for tourism development in Thai Nguyen Province”

From a dialogue…

On the morning of March 7, 2026, at May Plaza Hotel, the Thai Nguyen Provincial People’s Committee held the first “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” program on the theme “Provincial planning and urban development.” From its first edition, the program introduced a new approach to connecting the government with the business community: more intimate in setting, more open in discussion, while remaining focused on the major issues of development.

Tea was deliberately chosen as a symbol of connection. As envisioned by the organizers, each edition features a tea-culture setting showcasing distinctive products from tea-growing areas in the province, including Tan Cuong, La Bang, Trai Cai, Quan Chu, and Dong Phuc. Each cup of tea therefore carries not only a distinctive flavor but also a story of the land, its people, its products, and its aspirations for development. This is also what gives a dialogue forum rooted in local cultural values its distinctive identity.

Tea-opening ritual giving each “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” program its distinctive character

During the inaugural edition, participants discussed the Provincial Planning for the 2021 - 2030 period, with a vision to 2050, along with orientations for urban development, logistics, green transportation, tourism, and human-resource training. Businesses were given access to planning information and directly raised their needs, difficulties, and issues requiring resolution. The province also affirmed its continued commitment to administrative reform, maintaining the “green channel” mechanism, and creating a transparent and favorable investment environment. Based on discussions at the program, the Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee directed that “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” be held monthly, establishing a regular channel of exchange between provincial leaders, businesses, entrepreneurs, and investors.

While March opened with planning, April addressed an issue of particular importance to urbanization: housing and social housing development. As Thai Nguyen accelerates industrial and urban development and the province’s population is expected to continue growing rapidly due to in-migration, the province has set a target of more than 65.5 million m² of housing floor area and approximately 80,000 housing units by 2030, including about 60,000 social housing units; it has also identified 73 social housing projects covering nearly 259 hectares.

More important than the figures, however, was the candid way the issues were raised. The program became a venue for the government and businesses in real estate and urban development to discuss, identify, and seek solutions to difficulties involving input costs, pricing mechanisms, concessional credit, site clearance, resettlement, and access to project information.

Businesses sharing views at “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” programs

The dialogue produced specific solutions. The province required departments and sectors to review all projects, standardize and publicize procedures, and continue promoting the “60% green channel” mechanism for social housing projects, allowing certain investment and planning procedures to proceed in parallel to shorten implementation time. “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” therefore goes beyond listening, gradually turning issues raised at the tea table into concrete solutions.

By May, the discussion had expanded to green agriculture and tourism development - two areas identified as important pillars for diversifying growth drivers. Businesses, cooperatives, and experts proposed developing tourism products linked to the two distinctive resources of “lakes and tea,” improving transport and connectivity infrastructure, standardizing quality across tea-growing areas, and developing tourism around agricultural seasons. They also recommended land, tax, and communications policies to attract business investment in tourism. This edition also more clearly demonstrated the links among tea culture, agriculture, tourism, and the green economy. Tea became more than something to enjoy: it became a story promoting the locality and opening ways to create new value from existing advantages.

… to concrete connections

While the initial editions laid the foundation for an open and approachable dialogue between the government and businesses, the value of “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” has become more tangible since July through concrete figures and connections. Each meeting has moved beyond exchanges, shared perspectives, and efforts to find common ground, gradually creating opportunities for cooperation, investment commitments, and the mobilization of further resources for development.

Comrade Trinh Xuan Truong, Member of the Party Central Executive Committee and Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, and Comrade Vuong Quoc Tuan, Member of the Party Central Executive Committee, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, present in-principle investment approval decisions and investment registration certificates for three wind power and industrial projects, and land use right certificates to Thai Nguyen University in the northern area

On the morning of July 5, in Bac Kan Ward, the “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” program on “Attracting investment for socioeconomic development in the northern area of Thai Nguyen Province” made its mark by extending the dialogue space to the province’s northern area for the first time following the merger. The province presented in-principle investment approval decisions and investment registration certificates for three wind power and industrial projects, along with nine memoranda of understanding on investment cooperation in fields including industrial park infrastructure, renewable energy, tourism, organic agriculture, medicinal-herb processing, high-quality human-resource training, artificial intelligence (AI) applications, and agricultural-product consumption linkages. The total value of the projects and agreements facilitated through the program exceeded VND 18.8 trillion. These figures demonstrate the forum’s broad impact. A setting created for tea and dialogue opened investment opportunities, brought ideas and partners together, and turned commitments into concrete projects. “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” is therefore gradually evolving from a networking event into a channel for mobilizing resources for the province’s socioeconomic development.

Connections continued to expand as businesses raised practical concerns and worked toward solutions at the forum. The August edition, themed “Removing obstacles and helping businesses access bank credit,” brought together representatives of 36 banks and credit institutions, along with many businesses, entrepreneurs, and experts. The question of capital was addressed directly: what businesses need, how far banks can meet those needs, where the bottlenecks in credit access lie, and what mechanisms are needed to channel capital more quickly into production and business activities. Notably, connections made through the program were swiftly translated into action. In late July and early August 2026, facilitated by the province, Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel Joint Stock Corporation (TISCO) signed memoranda of understanding with 12 project owners and businesses with a combined demand for 168,000 tons of steel for local works and projects.

Just over a week later, at the August 8 “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” program, TISCO continued to sign agreements with six project owners with a total demand for 75,000 tons of steel. Through the two rounds of business matching, the total steel demand specified in the memoranda of understanding reached 243,000 tons. This clearly demonstrates the government’s role in matching businesses with suitable partners, expanding cooperation opportunities, and creating further room for local production and market development.

Provincial leaders congratulating businesses exchanging memoranda of cooperation at the August 2026 “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” program

At the August 8 program, another important connection was formed when banks and TNG Land signed a memorandum on credit financing for the TNG Viet Bac social housing project, with a total investment of VND 1,230.87 billion, including an expected VND 861.60 billion in credit financing.

A specific project makes the forum’s significance even clearer: the government not only listens to business difficulties but also proactively brings together parties capable of resolving them to find solutions. The gap between “needs” and “resources” is narrowed through these dialogues. This is also how “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” broadens the meaning of partnering with businesses. Beyond helping remove obstacles in production and business activities, the program connects businesses with tasks and sectors significant to the province’s overall development.

A clear example came on the morning of August 22, when the Provincial People’s Committee organized a program on “Connecting businesses - Partnering with Thai Nguyen FC.” While earlier editions focused on investment, markets, and credit, this one opened a discussion on professional sports and the business community’s social responsibility. Based on the view that “Thai Nguyen FC belongs to the people of Thai Nguyen,” the program called on the community to mobilize both material resources and moral support to help the club develop professionally and sustainably. The message quickly received a positive response. Thirty-two organizations and businesses contributed more than VND 115 billion in support and sponsorship to Thai Nguyen FC. This figure not only demonstrates the potential of the business community but also reflects the program’s ability to connect and mobilize social resources.

From cups of tea rich with the flavor of home, “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” is opening a new way of connecting: intimate in setting, open in dialogue, and practical in action. There, each story does not end when the meeting concludes; it continues through projects, capital flows, markets, and new resources.

Tea culture is thus doing more than spreading the aroma of Vietnam’s foremost tea region: it is becoming a bridge that brings ideas together, opens opportunities, and gradually turns commitments into reality. That is the distinctive imprint “Morning Tea with Entrepreneurs” is creating on Thai Nguyen’s development journey.