Vũ Việt Trang, General Director of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA), speaks at the event on Thursday. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — As Việt Nam enters a new era of nation's rise, the country is placing renewed emphasis on how it presents itself to the world.

At a roundtable on Thursday in Hà Nội, titled 'Positioning Việt Nam: Promoting the Nation's Image in the New Era', Government officials, diplomats, media executives and scholars came together to discuss how Việt Nam can better promote its national image in line with its political, economic and cultural ambitions.

Vũ Việt Trang, General Director of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA), stressed that national branding is no longer just the responsibility of the media sector; it must be a central component of Việt Nam’s long-term development strategy.

She emphasised that promoting Việt Nam’s image is not merely about visibility, but about shaping global perceptions in a way that supports economic growth, cultural development, tourism and international integration.

According to Trang, the national image should reflect a Việt Nam that is stable, innovative, dynamic, culturally rich, and friendly. In her view, the media is not just a support mechanism but a key driver of national development goals.

She said: "We need stories that are authentic, emotionally resonant, and inspiring, so the world can understand a Việt Nam that is modern and vibrant, yet deeply rooted in tradition."

Trang also laid out four key priorities for VNA in supporting the national branding strategy: diversifying storytelling methods; expanding multilingual content in major world languages; fostering public–private partnerships; and strengthening collaboration with international news agencies.

With a global network of 30 foreign bureaus and over 60 information products in nine languages, VNA plays a pivotal role in connecting Việt Nam with the world and vice versa.

Phạm Anh Tuấn, Director of the Department of Grassroots and External Information under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, presented a draft national strategy for promoting Việt Nam’s image abroad.

The strategy, developed under the direction of Prime Ministerial Resolution 47, is based on an urgent recognition: Việt Nam’s global image has yet to fully reflect its diplomatic, economic, and cultural achievements.

"The aim is to move Việt Nam from being merely recognised to being chosen and admired," Tuấn said, noting that the country must project an image of stability, innovation, cultural richness, and global relevance.

The draft strategy sets ambitious development targets by 2030: for instance, increasing cultural industry contributions to 8 per cent of GDP, boosting tourism’s share to 14 per cent of GDP, attracting at least 35 million international visitors, and securing Việt Nam a place among the world’s top 40 nation brands.

The communications focus will centre on portraying Việt Nam as a peaceful and stable nation, a regional hub for innovation, a country of diverse but unified cultural identities and a destination that is both livable and rich in experience.

The strategy also calls for the use of modern tools - social media, search engine optimisation, and digital data platforms - to expand outreach and better target international audiences.

Former ambassador Lương Thanh Nghị, who served in Australia and Denmark, highlighted the significant shift in how foreigners perceive Việt Nam.

"In the late 1990s and early 2000s, people still associated Việt Nam with poverty," he recalled.

"But now the image has changed - today, it’s graceful women in áo dài stepping out of cars, carrying laptops to work."

According to Nghị, most foreign audiences today see Vietnamese people as peaceful, tolerant, friendly, and hospitable. He estimated that "99 out of 100 people I met recognised these qualities in Vietnamese people".

However, he cautioned that some outdated and simplistic perceptions remain, often perpetuated by films and media content that still depict Việt Nam through the lens of wartime hardship.

Some still associate Vietnamese culture only with áo dài, phở, and bánh mì, overlooking the country’s depth and diversity. Nghị emphasised that the media has a vital role to play in reshaping these narratives and helping international audiences understand the full richness of Vietnamese identity.

Guests discuss the strategy to enhance Việt Nam’s image on the international stage. — VNA/VNS Photo

Đỗ Anh Đức, from the School of Journalism and Communication at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, proposed a more contemporary and flexible approach to branding the nation, one that focuses not just on content but on context, authenticity, and values.

He introduced the ICON model: Integrated, Contextualised, Organic and New.

• Integrated means engaging the entire political and social system - ministries, agencies, and communities - to coordinate branding efforts.

• Contextualised means adapting messaging to specific audiences. "When we brand Hà Nội, for example, we often think of a graceful woman in áo dài," Đức said.

"But a Western visitor might engage with Hà Nội through academia, while a businessperson experiences it through commerce. We must offer flexible cultural touchpoints."

• Organic emphasises the role of people. "Any campaign that doesn’t have the backing and participation of the public will fail," Đức warned.

• New calls for freshness and depth in storytelling. "It’s not enough to say Việt Nam is peaceful and stable," he added. "We must show what we’ve done with that peace - and how it was hard-won."

He also called on communicators to show how Việt Nam is translating traditional values into modern strengths. "We must demonstrate that Việt Nam can be a developed nation while contributing deeply human values, like community culture and neighbourly love, to the global conversation," he said.

Nguyễn Thị Phương Liên, deputy director of Vietnam Television's International Department (VTV4), spoke about the upcoming launch of Vietnam Today - a multimedia channel promoting Việt Nam's images scheduled to go live on September 2.

The new platform is intended to offer Việt Nam a more global and multidimensional voice in international media.

"We believe that all national image content must be multidimensional and globally relevant," Liên said.

"Vietnam Today won’t just report Việt Nam’s story - it will show how Việt Nam fits into regional and global issues.”

She gave the example of reporting on Việt Nam’s push for investment in science and technology, adding: "Instead of presenting dry statistics, we could host a roundtable with researchers, business leaders and policymakers. That kind of storytelling is more engaging to international investors."

Liên also stressed that successful communication must be human-centered.

"When we tell real stories, like a farmer in a remote village using a smartphone to sell produce online, it resonates more than any abstract figure," she said.

To connect with global audiences, she said, media products must meet four criteria: convey universal values, be authentic and emotional, meet international quality standards, and be accessible across platforms, from traditional media to modern digital channels.

"People might forget the details," she concluded, "but they’ll remember how our stories made them feel."

As Việt Nam streamlines its administrative structure and positions itself as a rising power in Southeast Asia, participants at the roundtable agreed: now is the time to tell a more compelling story about who Việt Nam is and what it stands for.

The national strategy for image promotion is expected to be submitted to the Government for approval later this month or in August. If implemented effectively, it could not only elevate Việt Nam’s visibility on the world stage but turn recognition into admiration and admiration into meaningful engagement. — VNS