Vietnam's relationship with Big Tech is at a crossroads

It's hard being your favourite supplier's favourite supplier.

- Catherine Thorbecke

Vietnam may be quickly outgrowing its role in the global tech industry as the attractive manufacturing side piece to China.

The South-east Asian nation has wisely capitalised on this trend to steadily grow foreign investment inflows and manufacturing capacity for increasingly high-tech gadgets. But it is hard being your favourite supplier's favourite supplier.

Years of playing the role as the tech sector's perpetual "plus-one" to China has left infrastructure straining and the labour force struggling to keep up. Multiple leadership shake-ups and a prolonged corruption crackdown have also sown fresh uncertainty for foreign businesses.

Being so dependent on outside investments and tech exports also makes it vulnerable to the ebbs of foreign demand and trade volatility. The World Bank warned last week that Vietnam's scope for playing a connecting role in supply chains amid global tensions "may be shrinking".

The country must focus on itself - upskilling the labour force, improving infrastructure and diversifying its economy to move up the value chain.

It could start by demanding more from relationships with Big Tech companies.

Earlier in October, the country announced that Meta Platforms will expand manufacturing of one of the latest, low-cost lines of mixed-reality headsets to Vietnam. The move is expected to create 1,000 jobs and "underscores Vietnam's growing importance in Meta's manufacturing ecosystem", according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.