New requirements for marine science and technology
The 14th Party Central Committee’s Resolution No. 20-NQ/TW dated July 28, 2026, (Resolution No. 20) on building and developing Viet Nam into a strong maritime nation has set out a new requirement for science and technology, not only to conduct research on the sea and exploit marine resources but also to gradually master the seas through knowledge, data, technology, and innovation.
This represents an important change in the approach to developing marine science. From a mindset focused primarily on research, surveys, and the application of individual technologies, the science and technology sector is facing the requirement to build up national capacity in the maritime domain in a comprehensive manner.
The government’s action programme to implement Resolution No. 20 has quantified a number of specific targets for 2030, including the establishment of two to three marine science, technology, and innovation research organisations reaching the level of the leading ASEAN countries; the development of a complete industrial and service chain for high-capacity, high-speed submarine cable infrastructure; and ensuring that people living on inhabited islands have access to essential services.
According to Minister of Science and Technology Vu Hai Quan, the target of building two to three strong marine research organisations should not simply be viewed in terms of the number of organisations, rather, they must be regarded as an indicator of national capacity. These organisations must be capable of bringing together strong teams of experts, possessing modern research infrastructure, mastering data and technologies, addressing major challenges, and participating in international research networks.
According to a report by the Ministry of Science and Technology, basic marine survey data remains incomplete and insufficiently detailed; digital data infrastructure is not yet interconnected; there is a shortage of deep-sea research vessels, autonomous underwater robots, and submersible equipment; capabilities in deep-sea technology and monitoring remain limited; the network of oceanographic research institutes and universities is fragmented; and businesses have yet to participate deeply in the innovation value chain.
To date, geological and mineral surveys at the 1:100,000 scale have covered only about 7.5% of the marine area; nautical charts at this scale have also reached only 23.4%. This represents a major data gap, particularly as Viet Nam moves towards developing offshore structures, submarine cables, and the exploitation of distant and deep-sea areas.
In addition, marine data is currently scattered across many agencies and lacks common standards; monitoring networks, particularly in deep and offshore areas, remain sparse; many deep-sea areas have not yet been surveyed in a coordinated manner; and Viet Nam remains significantly dependent on foreign equipment and technologies for deep-sea marine surveys and monitoring.
Gradually mastering strategic marine technologies
According to the orientations of the Ministry of Science and Technology, the coming period should focus on technologies for surveying and exploring the deep sea and seabed; carbon storage in offshore geological formations; marine biotechnology; offshore aquaculture capable of withstanding major storms; and renewable energy technologies such as offshore wind power and wave energy. In addition, artificial intelligence (AI), big data, sensors, and automated monitoring systems need to be incorporated into marine governance, disaster warning, and island monitoring.
From a research perspective, Associate Professor, PhD. Nguyen Nhu Trung, of the Institute of Earth Sciences under the Viet Nam Academy of Science and Technology said that the marine science and technology foundation should operate as a closed-loop system, from basic surveys, research, and multi-scale monitoring to data infrastructure, simulation, forecasting, and decision support. The three pillars of this system are knowledge, data, and technology.
One notable direction is the development of a Digital Twin Ocean, which would enable marine areas to be recreated in digital space; continuously update monitoring data; and simulate scenarios for forecasting, planning, disaster response, environmental incidents, and marine spatial governance. The Viet Nam Academy of Science and Technology is also preparing a marine research programme for the 2026-2035 period, with orientations including the development of a marine database, a marine organism gene bank, a long-term monitoring network, and a Digital Twin Ocean.
According to Associate Professor, PhD. Tran Tuan Anh, Vice President of the Viet Nam Academy of Science and Technology, successfully implementing Resolution No. 20 and Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW in the maritime sector requires a shift from single-discipline to interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research; from individual research topics to programmes addressing major national challenges; from fragmented data to shared marine data infrastructure; and from technology application to gradually mastering strategic marine technologies.
To turn these orientations into substantive capabilities, it is necessary to establish a marine innovation ecosystem involving the state, research institutes, universities, businesses, localities, and international partners. Businesses must participate from the stage of identifying problems, commissioning research, and co-financing through to testing, validation, and product commercialisation. Coastal localities also need to become direct actors in setting practical challenges, creating testing environments and markets for new technologies.
This must be accompanied by requirements to reform the organisation of science and technology tasks. Instead of numerous small and fragmented tasks, efforts should be concentrated on major “technology orders” with sufficient scale to enable research organisations, businesses, and scientific teams to pool resources and build their capabilities. The establishment of strong research organisations and the assignment of challenging technology tasks need to be carried out simultaneously, because if only individual research topics are undertaken without accumulating organisational capacity, research results can easily come to an end together with the task. Conversely, if investment is made in organisations without major problems to solve, research capacity is difficult to assess and raise to a higher level.
Therefore, the development of marine science and technology needs to be linked to the formation of national capacity in knowledge, data, research infrastructure, human resources, and technology. The goal is to gradually master the seas and oceans through science and technology and innovation, while creating momentum for the development of a green, modern, and sustainable marine economy, associated with firmly safeguarding national sovereignty at sea.
