Accompanying farmers, building a strong agriculture

(Chinhphu.vn) - From the spirit of open dialogue and specific commitments of the new Minister of Agriculture and Environment Tran Duc Thang, we can see a clear vision: Vietnamese agriculture will not only be a pillar of the economy, but also a pioneer in green development and global integration.

Mr. Luong Quoc Doan, member of the Party Central Committee, Chairman of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Farmers' Union and Minister of Agriculture and Environment Tran Duc Thang chaired the forum - Photo: VGP/Do Huong

On the morning of November 2, in Hanoi, the Forum "Chairman of the Vietnam Farmers' Union - Minister of Agriculture and Environment listens to farmers' voices" took place enthusiastically with the theme "Accompanying farmers into a new era". This is the first direct dialogue forum since Mr. Tran Duc Thang assumed the position of Minister of Agriculture and Environment, demonstrating the spirit of openness, listening and determination to act for farmers.

At the forum, Minister Tran Duc Thang affirmed: "I am committed to accompanying farmers, cooperatives and businesses. The Ministry will not stand aside but will directly work with all parties to remove difficulties and create conditions for Vietnamese agricultural products to develop more sustainably."

Mr. Luong Quoc Doan, member of the Party Central Committee, Chairman of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Farmers' Union, emphasized: This Listening to Farmers' Talk Forum is one of the important activities before the Prime Minister's Dialogue Conference with Farmers in 2025. According to a synthesis from the Today's Rural Newspaper/Dan Viet electronic newspaper, before the Forum took place, there were nearly 1,000 opinions, proposals, and recommendations sent to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, the Vietnam Farmers' Union, focusing on the very hot and current issues currently facing agriculture, farmers, and rural areas in Vietnam.

Firstly, the topic group is institutional innovation, administrative procedure reform in the context of operating a 2-level local government model and implementing decentralization and delegation of power in many areas of state management to localities, especially areas related to land, agricultural extension, veterinary medicine, and environment. Proposals and recommendations on continuing to reform administrative procedures, and unlocking investment resources in agriculture and rural areas.

Second, is the topic group on strongly promoting the application of science and technology and digital transformation, especially new technologies and artificial intelligence in agricultural and rural production. Many opinions expressed interest in the issue of traceability and agricultural product markets; scientific and technical solutions to reduce emissions, save energy, green economy, and circulation in agriculture.

Third, is the topic group on resource mobilization and production organization, developing sustainable production organization forms such as cooperatives, cooperative groups, and chain linkages. Opinions are interested in mechanisms and policies on capital, green credit, and human resource training for cooperatives.

Fourth, is the topic group on farmers and rural society. The opinions contributed on building new rural areas in the new period, new era, that is, civilized, secure, and affectionate rural areas; some opinions also participated in proposing to build a set of criteria "Digital farmers - Green farmers - Kind farmers" to aim at the goal of "Building a civilized, comprehensively developed Vietnamese peasant class with will, self-reliance, self-reliance, and aspirations to rise up; promoting the role of farmers as the main subject in developing the agricultural economy, rural economy, and building new rural areas" as proposed in the draft documents of the 14th National Party Congress.

Minister of Agriculture and Environment Tran Duc Thang - Photo: VGP/Do Huong

Removing bottlenecks in agricultural exports

One of the issues raised by many delegates and farmers at the forum was the recent backlog in durian and other agricultural exports. Representatives of cooperatives in the Central Highlands reported that due to the temporary suspension of some testing laboratories, many businesses were unable to complete export procedures.

Responding to this issue, Minister Tran Duc Thang said that the Ministry has worked with the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) to unify the testing process, and at the same time directed to increase the capacity of qualified units recognized by GACC.

"The Ministry will review the entire testing laboratory system, requiring full capacity operations, and at the same time adding human resources and equipment to eliminate congestion," the Minister emphasized.

At the same time, the Ministry is also building a mechanism to issue transparent and synchronous codes for growing areas and packaging facilities, aiming to digitize the entire traceability process. This is considered one of the important solutions to enhance the reputation and competitiveness of Vietnamese agricultural products.

Minister Tran Duc Thang affirmed that the central orientation of the industry in the coming period is "shifting from agricultural production to a modern, green and circular agricultural economy". The Ministry will focus on implementing the Project on reducing emissions in crop production in the 2025-2035 period, aiming for carbon neutrality by 2050.

Specifically, the Ministry is assigning specialized units to build a database of land, crops and livestock, combining the application of digital technology, AI and environmental sensors to help farmers cultivate precisely, reduce waste and greenhouse gas emissions.

"Vietnamese farmers are very good at adapting, but now is the time for us to produce smartly, with data and connections," the minister said.

Many opinions at the forum suggested that the Ministry should have specific policies to support agricultural cooperatives, especially in the consumption linkage stage. In response, the Minister said that the Ministry is reviewing the entire policy framework for collective economic development, and is coordinating with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance to build a credit mechanism and a separate support fund for agricultural cooperatives.

"If farmers go alone, they are just small-scale producers; but when they go with cooperatives and businesses, they become a link in a large value chain," Mr. Thang affirmed.

According to the plan, the Ministry will establish a working group to directly support new cooperative models, helping them access technology, capital and markets, while promoting digital transformation in cooperative governance.

In response to farmers' questions about overlaps in the management of input materials, fertilizers, and pesticides, the Minister said he would review all standards, licenses, and product registration processes to avoid the situation of "having to ask for permission from many places for one type of fertilizer."

"We will reorganize the management system in a unified and accountable direction, cutting out intermediaries to save businesses and farmers time and money."

In addition, the Ministry is also preparing to submit to the Government amendments to decrees related to agricultural product standards and food safety, in order to facilitate domestic production while still meeting international requirements.

In his concluding remarks, Minister Tran Duc Thang emphasized that all policies of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment in the new period must be directed towards farmers. He requested units under the Ministry to expand direct interaction channels with farmers and businesses, not to let information "block" between management levels and producers.

"I hope the Ministry will be a true companion of farmers - thinking together, working together, and benefiting together. Vietnamese agriculture must develop strongly, have identity, have a brand and be responsible to the environment," said the Minister.

Do Huong

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/dong-hanh-cung-nong-dan-kien-tao-nen-nong-nghiep-vung-manh-102251102121806652.htm