The appointment of 68-year-old Nguyen Van Nen, politburo member and Ho Chi Minh City party secretary, was announced on the morning of 25/8 by Nguyen Quang Duong, deputy head of the central organizing committee.

According to the politburo's decision, Mr. Nen will continue to oversee the Ho Chi Minh City party committee until the 14th party congress, scheduled for early next year.

Mr. Nen was elected as the party secretary of the former Ho Chi Minh City at the 11th city party congress for the 2020-2025 term, held on 17/10/2020. He continued in this role after the city's merger with Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau.

Ho Chi Minh City party secretary Nguyen Van Nen speaks at a meeting on 30/6. Photo: Quynh Tran

Ho Chi Minh City party secretary Nguyen Van Nen speaks at a meeting on 30/6. Photo: Quynh Tran

During his leadership of the Ho Chi Minh City party committee, the city faced a major pandemic outbreak, enduring months of lockdown and economic decline. Over the past nearly 5 years, the city has also addressed a series of complex and emerging issues, notably the Van Thinh Phat case, which resulted in legal action against several former leaders. Despite these challenges, particularly in the post-Covid-19 period, the city has made efforts to recover and rebuild, with budget revenue increasing to over 500,000 trillion VND last year.

As Ho Chi Minh City party secretary, Mr. Nen has been regarded as a modest and approachable leader, attentive to his subordinates and the public. During the restructuring of the government into a two-tier model, he emphasized the importance of developing additional support policies for residents.

Born in Tay Ninh province, Mr. Nen holds a law degree and previously served as chairman of the Tay Ninh provincial people's committee and then as the provincial party secretary. In July 2011, he became a member of the central committee of the communist party of Vietnam and deputy head of the steering committee for the central highlands. Later, he was appointed deputy head of the central propaganda department.

In November 2013, he was approved as minister and head of the government office. In January 2016, he was elected to the 12th central committee of the communist party of Vietnam. Subsequently, he was elected to the party secretariat and appointed head of the party central office, a position he held until the politburo appointed him to the central committee, the politburo, and nominated him for election as Ho Chi Minh City party secretary by the 11th city party congress on 11/10/2020.

The 14th national congress of the communist party of Vietnam is scheduled for January 2026 with 1,580 delegates. Five subcommittees have been established for the congress: Documents; Socio-Economic; Personnel; Party Statutes; and Congress Organization. The Documents Subcommittee is responsible for drafting the political report and other documents for the congress, including summarizing and evaluating the achievements of 40 years of Doi Moi (economic reforms), and defining the perspectives, objectives, and development orientations for the new period.

Le Tuyet