Forty years after Vietnam launched Doi Moi, a farmer in Can Tho offers a starting point for considering its next leap. Le Dong Phuong initially doubted that sowing fewer seeds could maintain her rice harvest. According to a 2024 World Bank account, repeated visits to demonstration farms eventually convinced her. Before changing how she worked, she needed evidence that the change would benefit her household. Vietnam’s ambitions are on a different scale. Its 14th Party Congress in January set a target of average annual GDP growth of at least 10 percent for 2026-2030, alongside the goal of becoming a high-income country by 2045. These ambitions invite a familiar Korean question: could a miracle on the Mekong follow the miracle on the Han? I believe Korea’s most useful contribution begins with an honest reading of its own experience. Education, infrastructure and technological learning helped Korean companies raise their competitiveness. Yet success at the top did not automatically produce prosperity throughout the supply chain. These achievements and difficulties are cues Vietnam can t