Ho Chi Minh City commemorates 50 years of its name with school upgrades, free metro rides and major infrastructure works

On July 2 2026, Vietnam marked the 50th anniversary of Saigon‑Gia Định’s official renaming as Ho Chi Minh City. Across the city a range of events were launched. In Diên Hồng ward officials broke ground on the renovation of six schools, allocating more than VND 37.6 billion to rebuild classrooms, corridors and safety systems.

A special cultural programme staged a one‑hour artistic performance, combining music, dance and multimedia to dramatise the city’s history from Nguyen Tat Thanh’s departure in 1911 to the 1976 renaming. A documentary titled “Ho Chi Minh City – Half a Century Bearing His Name” premiered on national TV, tracing the same milestones.

The city also offered a one‑day free ride on Metro Line 1 (Bến Thành – Suối Tiên) on 2 July, with QR‑code and chip‑card access, to celebrate the occasion. Parallel to cultural activities, Vingroup announced three flagship infrastructure projects: a 14‑km sea‑bridge linking Cần Giờ and Vũng Tàu, and two highway‑junction links to the Bến Lức‑Long Thành expressway, each costing tens of billions of dong.

High‑level officials laid flowers at the Ho Chi Minh monument and a data‑journalism exhibit titled “50 years of the City named after Bác” was launched, while a team of Gen Z students created an NFC‑enabled digital map of historic sites. Together these initiatives underline the city’s drive to modernise transport, education and public services while honoring its revolutionary heritage.