HANOI, VIETNAM — During a May 2026 government meeting on Vietnam’s materials industry, President To Lam stated that the country “must neither export raw resources nor sacrifice its environment gains”, with the former focusing pointedly on Vietnam’s rare earth reserves. This comes on the back of Vietnam’s ongoing efforts to move its rare earth sector up the value chain, following similar policies to other Southeast Asian states with regards to their own critical mineral sectors. Aware of their significant reserves, regional countries have been trying to capitalize on the global race to secure critical mineral supply chains in recent years. Results have been mixed so far and there is a real risk of becoming too dependent on foreign capital to fund local development agendas.
Southeast Asia’s ‘Downstreaming’ Strategy Risks Trading One Dependency for Another
Vietnam is pushing its rare earth sector up the value chain, seeking to capture more value from its reserves rather than export raw materials. But reliance on foreign capital could constrain national development goals.
