Also attending the event were Politburo members and Secretaries of the Party Central Committee: Bui Thi Minh Hoai, President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee; Nguyen Duy Ngoc, Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Organisation Commission; Tran Sy Thanh, Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Inspection Commission; Trinh Van Quyet, Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Information, Education and Mass Mobilisation; and Nguyen Thanh Nghi, Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Policies and Strategies. Deputy Prime Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra, National Assembly Vice Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Hong, and Poliburo member, Minister of Public Security Luong Tam Quang were also present.

Representing Son La province were Hoang Van Nghiem, member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of the provincial Party Committee, and head of the province's delegation of National Assembly deputies; members of the provincial Party Committee's Standing Board; and others.

To swiftly translate the Resolution of the 14th National Party Congress and the Resolution of the 16th provincial Party Congress into actions, the provincial Party Committee issued nine projects and resolutions, while its Standing Board adopted four additional projects and resolutions tailored to the province's specific conditions, potential and strengths.

In the first half of 2026, the province's economy maintained its growth momentum, although the pace remained vulnerable to various challenges, particularly adverse weather conditions. Its gross regional domestic product (GRDP) was estimated to increase by 6.02% year-on-year. Continued attention was given to culture, education, health care and social welfare. The implementation of the Politburo's strategic resolutions on science and technology development, digital transformation, international integration, private-sector development, education, health care, culture and energy security has delivered encouraging results, providing fresh impetus for the province's socio-economic development.

Secretary Nghiem presented several key proposals to the Politburo, the Secretariat, the Government and central authorities. Specifically, the province called for the expansion of the Hoa Binh–Moc Chau Expressway section through Son La from two to four lanes, accelerated investment in the CT.03 Expressway connecting Moc Chau, Son La, Dien Bien and Tay Trang Border Gate, and approval of the detailed master plan for Na San Airport. It also proposed mechanisms to attract investment in power transmission infrastructure, updates to the power grid plan across Dien Bien, Lai Chau and Son La provinces, and adequate central funding for Project 666 on socio-economic development in the Son La hydropower resettlement areas.

At the event, Party and State officials, and representatives of ministries and agencies, responded to Son La's proposals, identified key bottlenecks hindering the province's development, and put forth practical solutions to promote growth in the coming period.

Concluding the working session, General Secretary and President Lam acknowledged Son La's recent achievements and efforts. He urged the Standing Board of the provincial Party Committee to clearly define the province's development model and position in the northwestern region, and promote growth without compromising environmental protection, social welfare or governance discipline.

He stressed the need to focus resources on key growth drivers rather than spreading investments too thinly, while calling for the province's development plan featuring four economic zones, two growth poles and seven development corridors to be translated into concrete projects with clearly identified land resources, funding, implementation timelines and individuals who take the responsibility.

The top leader stressed that Son La should turn its expressways into development corridors and integrate the planning of logistics hubs, processing zones, urban areas and tourism sites along the Hoa Binh–Moc Chau and Moc Chau–Son La–Dien Bien expressways.

He also urged the province to strengthen agricultural value chains, expand industrial infrastructure supporting agriculture, and focus on key products such as Arabica coffee, fruit, tea, dairy and medicinal herbs. He said Son La should become a hub for high-quality and specialty coffee, and improve cultivation data and product traceability to meet European market standards.

General Secretary and President Lam also called for the selective development of industries aligned with the locality’s competitive advantages and the removal of key development bottlenecks. He urged the province to complete 13 inter-level boarding schools in time for the new academic year, improve the quality of education in border areas, enhance the efficiency of the two-tier local government model through digital transformation and better public administration, and safeguard national defence, border security and ethnic unity.

Regarding the province's proposals, he asked the Government Party Committee to direct the Government, ministries and central agencies to work closely with Son La to remove obstacles and prioritise infrastructure investment, enabling it to achieve its socio-economic development goals for 2026–2030 and become a growth driver for the northwestern region./.