Prime Minister visits Netherlands' agriculture innovation hub

ABO/NDO- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited the World Horti Centre (WHC) in South Holland province on December 12 (local time) as part of his official visit to the Netherlands.

During the meeting with PM Chinh, Director of WHC Puck van Holsteijn said WHC can provide seeds and technologies for Vietnam, so that the country’s agriculture can develop with higher productivity and quality.

A number of Dutch enterprises have cooperated with Vietnam in this field, he said, expressing the belief that in the coming time, the centre and Vietnamese agencies and units will cooperate more practically and effectively in planning and developing smart agriculture.

PM Chinh said Vietnam is striving to promote agriculture development in the direction of ecological agriculture and modern countryside, so the country wants to learn experience from the Netherlands in developing green, clean, sustainable agriculture, and diversifying the supply chain.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visits the World Horti Centre (WHC) in South Holland province, the Netherlands (Photo: VNA).

He hoped the Netherlands can support Vietnam in developing processing technologies and markets, and producing products that are suitable for global consumption demand, adding that Vietnam can help the Netherlands develop raw materials.

The PM wished the Netherlands will continue to provide technical assistance and mobilise more resources from investors, donors and development partners for Vietnam, especially for its Mekong Delta region, helping the Southeast Asian nation successfully implement the region’s sustainable agricultural transformation plan.

He called for more technical support from the European country for Vietnam’s management, research and training agencies to help them strengthen their capacity in digital transformation in agriculture development, emission reduction, green growth, hi-tech agriculture, circular economy, and logistics.

Vietnam also needs the Netherlands' coordination and support in conducting research into the application of space technology in the field of irrigation and preventing erosion of river banks and coasts.

WHC is a hub of collaboration and a major innovation centre of the international greenhouse horticulture sector, where business, research, demonstration, teaching and education converge, as well as providing a focus for greenhouse companies to do business.

(Source: NDO)