The analysis is particularly relevant as Ho Chi Minh City faces rapid urbanization, economic transformation, international integration, and the growing influence of digital technology. Chau argues that economic growth, infrastructure modernization, and technological innovation cannot alone guarantee sustainable urban development. The quality of human relationships, social responsibility, cultural identity, and civic behavior also influence how successfully a city develops.
According to the article, the human value system of Ho Chi Minh City is more than a collection of cultural characteristics. It functions as an internal social resource that can influence the quality and sustainability of urban development.
Five values that characterize Ho Chi Minh City
Chau identifies five major groups of values associated with the people of Ho Chi Minh City.
1. Dynamism, flexibility, and creativity
The city’s long history as a commercial and service center has encouraged practical thinking, initiative, flexibility, and the willingness to experiment. These characteristics can support entrepreneurship, innovation, skilled human-resource development, and adaptation to changes in the market economy and the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
2. Compassion, humanism, and community spirit
Despite the pressures of metropolitan life, Chau highlights compassion—or nghĩa tình—as an important characteristic of Ho Chi Minh City residents. Mutual assistance, charitable activities, humanitarian initiatives, and support for vulnerable groups demonstrate how community-oriented values can remain important in a rapidly changing urban environment.
3. Moral integrity and straightforwardness
The article also emphasizes sincerity, loyalty, moral principles, and a preference for righteousness over material gain. Chau argues that a direct and transparent social style can help strengthen trust and create the foundations for long-term cooperation in both personal relationships and economic activities.
4. Tolerance and openness
Ho Chi Minh City has developed through the convergence of people from different regions, ethnic communities, and religious backgrounds. According to Chau, this diversity has contributed to openness, respect for differences, and the ability to adapt to new cultural and social influences.
5. Patriotism and social responsibility
The fifth value is a connection between individual development, historical awareness, community responsibility, and the wider interests of society and the nation. Chau presents this value as an important element linking urban development with collective social goals.
Together, these values represent an interaction between tradition and modernity, individual interests and community interests, and urban dynamism and humanistic culture.
Human values are linked to urban development
The article argues that these values can directly support the city’s development.
Creativity and adaptability can help strengthen innovation, entrepreneurship, and the ability of workers and businesses to respond to economic and technological change. Compassion and community responsibility can help maintain social cohesion in a densely populated city where economic inequality and rapid urbanization can create social pressure.
Meanwhile, tolerance, moral integrity, and openness can contribute to more constructive social relationships and civilized urban behavior. Patriotism and social responsibility can strengthen social trust and encourage citizens to participate in collective development.
Chau’s central argument is therefore clear: human development should advance alongside economic and technological development rather than being treated as a separate cultural issue.
Progress exists, but urban pressures remain
The article points to several indicators showing progress in the promotion of human values in Ho Chi Minh City.
The city has approximately 4.9 million working-age residents, with more than 85% trained and skilled, according to the sources cited by Chau. The city’s Human Development Index is also reported to exceed 0.8, placing it in the very-high category nationally.
Social welfare is another area highlighted in the article. Between 2021 and 2025, more than 69,000 poor and near-poor households were reported to have moved out of those categories under the multidimensional poverty standard. Community assistance, charitable activities, disaster relief, and support for vulnerable populations were also identified as continuing expressions of compassion and social responsibility.
Education also provides a foundation for civic and moral development. The article reports a 99.71% literacy rate among residents aged 15 to 60, while moral education, lifestyle education, and civic skills are incorporated into formal education and social activities.
However, these achievements face significant pressure.
Rapid urbanization has contributed to environmental pollution, traffic congestion, limited public spaces, and livelihood pressures. Income inequality can also make it more difficult for shared values such as compassion and social responsibility to be practiced equally across communities.
Population aging is another challenge. The article reports that people aged 60 and above account for more than 12.5% of the city’s population, while changing family structures may weaken traditional intergenerational transmission of values. Digital platforms and international cultural influences are also transforming how younger generations understand community, responsibility, and social behavior.
From values to everyday behavior
For Chau, promoting human values requires more than public slogans. The values need to become visible in everyday behavior, education, community life, economic activity, and urban governance.
The article recommends placing human-value development within the city’s broader development strategy. Economic growth, smart-city programs, administrative reform, digital transformation, and human-resource development should incorporate goals related to compassion, creativity, tolerance, and social responsibility.
Schools and families also have an important role. Rather than relying only on moral messages, education should encourage concrete habits such as respect, responsibility, creativity, adaptability, community awareness, and civic behavior. Public spaces, cultural institutions, community organizations, and urban media can reinforce these values through practical activities.
Citizens should also be treated as active participants in urban development. Chau recommends greater opportunities for residents to contribute ideas, participate in urban management, provide social oversight, and develop community initiatives.
At the economic level, the article calls for stronger support for entrepreneurship, innovation, knowledge-based industries, and the digital economy while maintaining transparency, public-service ethics, and social equity.
Balancing global integration with local identity
One of the article’s key messages is that modernization does not require abandoning cultural identity.
Chau argues that Ho Chi Minh City can selectively embrace global values—including respect for human dignity, creativity, equality, and social responsibility—while preserving and adapting its traditional values. The challenge is to maintain a balance between global integration and local identity, individual development and community responsibility, and technological progress and humanistic values.
In an ethical paraphrase of Chau’s argument, the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City researcher presents human values as an internal foundation for urban development: a modern city needs innovation and economic strength, but its long-term sustainability also depends on the way people treat one another and participate in society.
The article concludes that Ho Chi Minh City’s future development should integrate economic modernization with cultural and human development. It also recommends future research that develops measurable indicators for values such as creativity, compassion, tolerance, and social responsibility, particularly in urban governance, education, workplaces, civic participation, and social cohesion.
Future research should also examine how social media, online communities, digital labor markets, and global cultural flows are changing value orientations among younger residents. These technologies may strengthen innovation and civic participation but can also contribute to misinformation, individualism, and social fragmentation.
Author Profile
Tran Thi Chau is affiliated with the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The published article does not state Chau’s academic degree or a formal field-of-expertise title. Based on the subject of the publication, Chau’s academic work represented in this article focuses on human value systems, urban culture, human development, and sustainable urban development.
Source
Article Title: The Human Value System of Ho Chi Minh City and its Role in Building a Civilized, Modern, Compassionate City
Author: Tran Thi Chau
Affiliation: University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Journal: Indonesian Journal of Interdisciplinary Research in Science and Technology (MARCOPOLO)
Publication: Volume 4, No. 1, 2026, pp. 1–14
DOI: 10.55927/marcopolo.v4i1.208
Official Journal: https://journalmarcopolo.my.id/index.php/marcopolo
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