Accompanying Vietnam’s Renovation process, entrepreneur Nguyen Thi Nga has dedicated herself to building sustainable value for the country through business growth, global integration, national cultural preservation, and social responsibility. Conferred by the Party and State, the title of Labour Hero of the Renovation Era is the highest recognition of her exceptional contributions to creative labour, socio-economic development, and national building and defence.
Pioneering Through Renovation: Building the Stature of a Modern Vietnamese Enterprise
In the early years of Vietnam’s Renovation, when the private sector still faced severe constraints in capital, managerial experience, and the capacity to integrate internationally, Nguyen Thi Nga was quick to recognise the opportunities for growth. Starting from an import-export company established in 1993, she personally charted its strategy, expanded into new fields, forged partnerships with leading global players, and steadily built BRG into a multi-sector economic and services group with a prominent standing in Vietnam. The Group now spans finance and banking, real estate, golf, hotels and resorts, entertainment, retail, manufacturing, services, and high-tech agriculture, providing stable employment for more than 22,000 workers.
Throughout her career at the helm of the company, she has kept a proactive spirit, seeking out opportunities, daring to venture into new fields, embracing challenges, and steadfastly pursuing her goals.
She once said: “Although BRG Group has grown for more than 30 years, I always carry the mindset of a start-up.” That mindset has driven her to steer the business through many turbulent periods, while helping affirm the intellect, mettle, and growing importance of Vietnamese entrepreneurs in the country’s development.
An Innovative Mindset, Driving Proactive International Integration
In Nguyen Thi Nga’s vision, innovation and digital transformation serve as the twin engines of corporate competitiveness and, by extension, national competitiveness. Under her leadership, BRG has invested hundreds of billions of VND in science, technology, and digital transformation, building a modern governance system to run its multi-sector ecosystem.
At the same time, deep international integration has remained a constant thread throughout her career. Drawing on her personal standing and strategic vision, she has cultivated thriving partnerships with globally renowned corporations such as Hilton Worldwide, Marriott International, InterContinental Hotels Group, Accor, Nicklaus Design, Greg Norman Golf Course Design, and Sumitomo, bringing international governance standards, technology, and service quality into Vietnam.
This impressive footprint of integration comes to life through a nationwide network of 10 golf courses across six complexes; a world-class hotel system present in many destinations and serving millions of guests; a network of more than 100 BRGMart and FujiMart supermarkets and stores serving nearly 10 million customer visits each year; and the North Hanoi Smart City project, with a total planned investment of USD 4.2 billion, aiming to become Vietnam’s first green, modern, carbon-neutral urban model.
These achievements attest to Nguyen Thi Nga’s pioneering vision, her capacity for execution, and her aspiration to develop BRG Group to international standards, embodying the true ethos of “go global”.
Reviving Cultural Heritage, Bringing Vietnam’s Quintessence to the World
Alongside growing her business, Nguyen Thi Nga has always paid special attention to preserving and promoting the nation’s cultural values.
If integration is a journey to bring the world’s quintessence to Vietnam, then Nguyen Thi Nga’s dedication to heritage preservation is an effort to carry Vietnam’s quintessence to the world.
Steeped in reverence for traditional values, she has dedicated relentless efforts to restoring Chu Dau ceramics, an ancient ceramic tradition with a history of nearly 600 years that had faded over the centuries. Chu Dau ceramic artifacts are now preserved and displayed in 46 museums across 32 countries, and many Chu Dau pieces are today chosen as diplomatic gifts for heads of state, senior leaders, and international delegations, helping to showcase cultural identity and the image of the Vietnamese people to friends around the world.
A Sense of Responsibility to the Community, an Aspiration to Serve the Country
Guided by the philosophy that “the ultimate goal of business is to serve the community,” Nguyen Thi Nga has consistently paired economic performance with social responsibility. In the 2024–2025 period, BRG Group allocated nearly VND 600 billion to infrastructure development and the elimination of temporary and dilapidated housing, handing over 3,756 homes to families of people with meritorious service to the country and to disadvantaged households..
The Dream Nurturing Fund has accompanied hundreds of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, helping them continue their education. Separately, BRG Group has planted millions of trees across many localities, contributing to ecosystem restoration, supporting local livelihoods, and advancing Vietnam’s green development goals.
Her spirit of service is further reflected in the public responsibilities she has taken on across multiple roles. As Chairman of the Vietnam Private Business Association, she stays closely engaged with and represents the voice of the business community, actively contributing to policy consultations that help unlock resources for development. As a member of the Central Executive Committee of the Vietnam Women’s Union (14th tenure), she actively promotes gender equality and women’s economic empowerment. Helping women gain access to capital, strengthen governance capacity, connect with markets, and sell their products through the BRG ecosystem, thereby building livelihoods, expanding production and business activities, and inspiring the next generation of women and entrepreneurs.
Recognition Befitting a Lifetime of Dedication
In recognition of nearly half a century of labour, creativity, and business achievement, Nguyen Thi Nga has been awarded the First-Class, Second-Class, and Third-Class Labour Orders by the President, and has been recognised as a National Emulation Fighter and an Outstanding Citizen of the Capital.
Within the business community, she has repeatedly been honoured as an Outstanding Vietnamese Entrepreneur under the Thanh Giong Cup, and an Outstanding Vietnamese Businesswoman under the Golden Rose Cup; voted among Vietnam’s Top 10 Outstanding Entrepreneurs; and presented with the Vietnamese Women’s Award
On the international stage, she has been named by Forbes Asia among its Power Businesswomen in Asia; honoured multiple times by Forbes Vietnam on its list of Vietnam’s Most Influential Women; and presented with the ASEAN-BAC Achievement Award at the 2024 ASEAN Business Awards, as well as the UN Women Asia-Pacific Women’s Empowerment Principles Award, alongside a number of prestigious honours in Asia’s golf industry.
These accolades and honours reflect Nguyen Thi Nga’s journey of creative labour, her pioneering spirit of innovation, and her consistent sense of responsibility to the community, society, and the country.
Publish Date: 9/9/2026
Organized by:
PHẠM KHÁNH SƠN
Content and design:
VŨ MINH
