Mekong Delta localities asked to focus on agricultural restructuring

Promoting agricultural restructuring associated with new lifestyle rural area building is of urgent need to help the Mekong Delta region raise the agricultural production value per unit of area and improve people’s incomes.  

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh, who heads the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region, made the statement at a meeting in Can Tho city on December 24, which aimed to review the region’s 2014 socio-economic performance and map out orientations for 2015.

To realise this important task, southwestern localities need to boost close links between farmers, collectives and enterprises in application of scientific and technological advances, contributing to raising production values, responding to climate change and updating farmers and businesses with market information, he said.

The deputy PM spoke highly of the region’s outstanding achievements in socio-economic development and maintenance of security and national defence over the past year.

He asked localities to work closely with central agencies in 2015 to promptly submit to the Government a list of infrastructure investment priorities, especially in the transport sector; complete the Mekong Delta regional link mechanism; and implement climate change response programmes.

The region was also requested to implement well ethnic and religious affairs and the comprehensive education reform programme in line with the Politburo’s Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW; care for the poor households; maintain political security and national defence; and timely address people’s complaints.

At the meeting, deputies discussed existing limitations in the region including the issues of regional link, investment attraction, funding for infrastructure, agricultural restructuring and new-style rural area building.

The southwestern region recorded an estimated economic growth rate of 8.98% in 2014, 1.5 times higher than the country’s average. Its industrial production increased 11.9% against last year, while export turnover was estimated to reach US$12.3 billion, a year-on-year increase of 15.87%.

In 2015, the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region has set the key goals of a 9.4% economic growth rate, US$13.6 billion in export revenue, over VND44 trillion in budget collection and the rate of poor households dropping by 4.5%.

(Source: nhandan.org.vn)