Four East Asian Tiger economies (Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan) crafted a growthtemplate that several Southeast Asian countries have successfully adapted, none more successfully thanVietnam. Its economic performance since the late 1990s has been keyed to economic openness, a focuson export-led industrialization, dismantling of rural collectives, incentives for investors from abroad,investment in physical and human assets, increased participation in the regional economy, and integrationwith thriving cross-Pacific global value chains (GVCs).1 Among the late starting low-incomeeconomies, Vietnam is arguably the only one that approaches the performance of the East Asian Tigersduring their heyday in the last quarter of the twentieth century. For that reason, and because its resourceendowment approximates that of many least-developed countries (LDCs) currently attemptingto ascend the income ladder, Vietnam’s development over the past 25 years deserves close attentionbecause it shows how the East Asian model can be made to deliver results in the global environmentprevailing in the twenty-first century. Vietnam is not out of the woods just yet. There are constraints,institutional hurdles, and problems to be tackled if Vietnam is to sidestep the middle-income trap. Andfor its trade to flourish and the complexity of its exports to increase, global value chains for electronics,auto parts, garments, and resource-based commodities would need to stabilize and possibly grow.2