Labor Hero Lê Nữ Thùy Dương: a 30-year journey of dedication and creating sustainable value.
Ms. Lê Nữ Thùy Dương, Vice Chairwoman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of KN Holdings Group, was honored to be awarded the prestigious title of Labor Hero by the Party and the State (December 6, 2025). This is a well-deserved recognition for her nearly 30-year journey of effective business leadership and her tangible contributions to the community and the nation. Through her story, the portrait of a businesswoman emerges—one associated with large-scale projects, a compassionate soul, a human-centered management mindset, and the refined character of a modern Vietnamese woman.
She joined the management of KN Holdings in its early years, when the company primarily operated in garment manufacturing, infrastructure construction, and real estate. Together with her father and mother—Labor Hero Lê Văn Kiểm and Labor Hero Trần Cẩm Nhung—she gradually expanded the scale and scope of investment, transforming KN Holdings into a multi-industry corporation.
Currently, KN Holdings focuses on five main sectors: real estate, services, renewable energy, industrial parks, and logistics.
In her executive role, Ms. Thùy Dương has continuously improved the organizational structure, optimized operational efficiency, and set long-term strategic directions for the Group. Under her leadership, KN Holdings has maintained sustainable growth momentum, with total investment capital now exceeding VND 120 trillion.
Alongside its development goals, the Group provides stable employment for thousands of staff and workers, makes positive contributions to the state budget, and takes the lead in social welfare programs—thereby making practical contributions to the development of the localities where it operates.
Alongside its development goals, the Group provides stable employment for thousands of staff and workers, makes positive contributions to the state budget, and takes the lead in social welfare programs—thereby making practical contributions to the development of the localities where it operates.
In the real estate sector, building on the foundation of being one of the first private enterprises to invest in this field in Vietnam and possessing a strategically located land bank, Ms. Lê Nữ Thùy Dương has promoted cooperation with CapitaLand (Singapore) and Maeda (Japan) to successfully develop many high-end real estate projects in Ho Chi Minh City, such as The Vista An Phú, Vista Verde, Feliz En Vista, Waterina Suites, and Define. These projects have made a strong mark thanks to their focus on living space design, integrated amenities, construction quality, and have received numerous prestigious awards from reputable domestic and international organizations.
She has also made a strong mark on the market by developing CaraWorld Cam Ranh (Khanh Hoa)—a coastal mega-urban area recognized by Vietnam Records as the first project in Vietnam located adjacent to both an international airport and an international seaport. With a scale of nearly 800 hectares, the project is planned as a multi-functional coastal urban area, integrating residential, commercial, service, and entertainment components. Many major amenities have already been put into operation, such as the 27-hole KN Golf Links designed by Greg Norman, the Wyndham Grand Cam Ranh resort, CaraBeach seaside park, and residential subdivisions that have been handed over to customers.
Positioned as a strategic project within the KN Holdings ecosystem, CaraWorld Cam Ranh aims to become an iconic coastal mega-urban area in the South Central region, contributing to establishing Cam Ranh as an independently recognized destination on Vietnam’s tourism map. With a solid foundation of integrated planning, complete legal framework, superior construction standards, and a long-term development vision, the project has been honored by prestigious organizations such as the PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards, Dot Property Awards, and Asia Pacific Property Awards, thereby affirming its credibility and position in the real estate market.
Continuing the strategic direction, in the industrial park sector, Ms. Thùy Dương has swiftly captured the trend of global supply chain shifts to make investment decisions in industrial park infrastructure in Đồng Nai Province, aiming to attract major global corporations to invest in Vietnam. The two projects, Nam Long Thành and Đông Long Thành, are being developed as green and smart industrial parks. These projects are planned with consultancy from leading Japanese design firms such as Nippon Koei and Nikken Sekkei, meeting international standards.
She has shaped a new-generation industrial city development model following smart and eco-friendly trends—integrating modern infrastructure and synchronized amenities for experts and workers, with the aim of anticipating high value-added industries, developing supporting industries, and building interconnected industrial value chains.
In the renewable energy sector, since 2018, KN Holdings has invested in solar power projects in Khánh Hòa. The three plants—KN Cam Lâm, Cam Lâm VN, and KN Vạn Ninh—were completed on schedule, with a total capacity of nearly 200 MW and total investment capital of over VND 4,300 billion. Each year, these plants supply hundreds of millions of kWh of electricity to the national grid and generate a stable source of revenue for the local area.
Ms. Thùy Dương stated that the company’s orientation is to expand investment in solar power projects in the coming period, with a total capacity of approximately 2,600 MW. This direction is not only aimed at supplying clean electricity to manufacturing plants that require green certifications, but also at meeting the demand for clean energy in the industrial parks developed by KN Holdings.
In parallel with investment activities, Ms. Lê Nữ Thùy Dương has devoted significant dedication and resources to social welfare programs, with total contributions exceeding VND 200 billion across various areas such as healthcare, education, environmental protection, gratitude initiatives, and disaster relief support.
Typical contributions include donating VND 100 billion to the COVID-19 vaccine fund and VND 55 billion to support the elimination of temporary and dilapidated housing in Đồng Nai Province. She has also regularly made practical and timely contributions to support people affected by floods and natural disasters, demonstrating deep compassion and a spirit of sharing. Notably, she is the first and, to date, the only Vietnamese person to contribute USD 3 million to the Global Fund to Fight Tuberculosis, thereby working alongside the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.S. Government to raise the total support budget for Vietnam to USD 13.5 million.
Ms. Thùy Dương has pioneered the application of wastewater recycling treatment technology in the “Toilets for Children” program, in collaboration with the Central Committee of the Vietnam National Union of Students. She has overseen the construction of new facilities at 150 schools across 21 provinces and cities, helping improve living conditions and safeguard students’ health. She is also known as a businesswoman deeply committed to community activities for women and children. Over many years, she has actively accompanied and supported programs such as “Mother Sponsorship,” “School Milk,” “Spring for Children,” and “Loving Kitchen,” among others.
Her persistent efforts have been recognized by the Party and the State through the awarding of the title Labor Hero, the First-, Second-, and Third-Class Labor Orders, a Certificate of Merit from the Prime Minister, along with many other prestigious honors. However, when reflecting on nearly 30 years of business and contribution, she does not speak much about these titles. What she cares more about is the progress of each project, investment efficiency, the stability of the organizational system, and responsibility toward employees.
In the story of a female entrepreneur on the occasion of International Women’s Day, what remains is not prominence or glamour, but her steadfast pursuit of a clear path: building a business with credibility, discipline, and the awareness that development is only truly meaningful when accompanied by a spirit of dedication and service.
According to the newspaper https://vneconomy.vn/
