Former Minister Le Huy Ngo, a lifetime of dedication to farmers

Former Minister Le Huy Ngo is remembered as a leader close to the people, dedicated, leaving a deep impression on Vietnamese farmers.

Former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Huy Ngo passed away in the early morning of September 16, 2025.

Mr. Le Huy Ngo was a former member of the Party Central Committee, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Head of the Central Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention (PCLB) (now the National Steering Committee for PCTT), and a National Assembly Delegate of the 10th and 11th terms.

He is known as a lifelong Minister for the people, for the fields, for the development of rural Vietnam.

Minister in the storm and flood

In the memories of many people in the Central and Northern regions, the image of former Minister Le Huy Ngo is associated with the flood seasons.

In just 10 years of holding the position of Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment ), and Head of the Central Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention (1997-2004), he had to lead and direct the response and recovery of 67 natural disasters of different scales and levels across the country.

Minister Le Huy Ngo (dark shirt, right) inspected flood and storm prevention work in 1999 with General Secretary Le Kha Phieu. Photo: TL.

From the plains to the mountains, from the storm-flooded Central region to the flooded Mekong Delta, wherever there is difficulty or natural disaster, there are his footprints. That is why the people affectionately call him by special names: "Minister of Farmers", "Minister of Storms and Floods", showing a man who is completely devoted to the people.

He left in the hearts of the people the belief that leaders can also endure hardships and share dangers with them. It was this dedication that made him remembered not only as an agricultural manager, but also as a “man of the people”.

The book “People walking in storms and floods” is about valuable experiences in natural disaster prevention activities of former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Huy Ngo. Photo: nongnghiep.vn.

During his leadership, Vietnam's agricultural sector not only fought against natural disasters, but also rose to assert its new position. He promoted the reforestation program, contributing to increasing coverage; in 2004, wood and forest product exports exceeded the 1 billion USD mark for the first time, opening up prospects for the wood processing industry. He also initiated the "50 million/ha field" movement, aiming to increase production value, helping farmers escape the self-sufficiency mindset.

Not only stopping at natural disaster prevention, he also contributed to forming the foundation for a new way of thinking in agricultural development: aiming at commodity production, organizing according to value chains, promoting the connection between the State, businesses, scientists and farmers. Although still in the initial stage, this way of thinking has opened up a different approach, going beyond the vicious cycle of "good harvest, low price", aiming at the goal of farmers truly benefiting from their labor.

With these contributions, Mr. Le Huy Ngo's name is associated with the transformation period of Vietnamese agriculture: both resilient against storms and reaching out to the world with branded agricultural and forestry products. And above all, he left a spiritual legacy, that is, leaders must know how to walk with the people, especially in the most difficult times.

The journey from a student in a fishing village to a leader in the agricultural industry

Mr. Le Huy Ngo was born in 1938 in Tinh Hai commune, Tinh Gia district (now Hai Binh ward, Thanh Hoa province). In his political career, he was an alternate member of the Central Executive Committee of the 6th Party Congress, a member of the Central Committee of the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th Party Congresses; and a National Assembly delegate of the 9th and 10th terms.

Starting in 1956, he studied at the Central College of Agriculture and Forestry, then worked at the Phu Tho Department of Agriculture. After graduating from Hanoi University of Agriculture, he successively held many positions in Vinh Phuc province: Head of the Planning Department of the Department of Agriculture, Member of the Provincial Administrative Committee, Vice Chairman of the Agricultural Committee, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, and then continued to be trusted to hold the position of Chairman of the People's Committee and Secretary of the Vinh Phu Provincial Party Committee.

Mr. Le Huy Ngo, the "minister of farmers".

In 1988, he was assigned by the Politburo to serve as Secretary of the Thanh Hoa Provincial Party Committee. He then assumed the position of Deputy Head of the Standing Committee of the Party Central Committee's Organization Commission. In 1997, he was assigned to hold the position of Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, and concurrently Head of the Central Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention.

In the highest position of the industry, he does not only operate by management theory. Coming from a schoolboy from a fishing village, he always maintains his simplicity, dedication, and belief that: only when farmers change their lives, the country will be strong.

Although he retired in 2008, he continued to advise on the national target program on new rural construction, demonstrating his lifelong commitment to the field he considered the "roots" of the nation.

His life, from a young man from Thanh Hoa coastal region to an influential Minister, is a journey of rising up with knowledge, courage and a heart always turned towards farmers and the countryside.

“Do it for the people, because it is very difficult for the people”…

One of the impressive sayings of Mr. Le Huy Ngo that everyone remembers is “Do whatever is best for the people, because the people are still having a hard time. The plains are this difficult, the mountains are even more difficult”. That is not a slogan, but the real concern of an experienced person, a leader who understands that the ultimate value of every policy is to improve people’s lives.

Former President Tran Duc Luong (center) and Mr. Le Huy Ngo (left). Photo: TL.

Throughout his career, he has been associated with a simple, practical leadership style. He was not afraid to roll up his pants and go into the fields, wade with farmers, or sit for hours in people's houses to listen to their stories. Those trips helped him clearly feel the difficulties of the countryside: lack of capital, lack of infrastructure, and frequent natural disasters. And from there, he sought to solve them with specific programs: solidifying canals, building reservoirs, opening roads to villages, and introducing new varieties of crops and livestock into production.

Colleagues remember him as a Minister who “went through storms and floods”. Dr. To Van Truong, former Director of the Southern Institute of Water Resources Planning, once said about former Minister Le Huy Ngo: “His whole life was like a journey through storms, keeping his heart for farmers and the countryside”.

After retirement, he still devoted himself to the new rural development program. He repeatedly emphasized: "Meeting commune and district standards is necessary, but the most important thing is that the lives of each person and each village must change significantly." This ideology shows a humanistic perspective, putting people at the center, beyond achievement reports.

For his contributions, former Minister Le Huy Ngo was awarded the 60-year Party membership badge; the Second-class Independence Medal; many First, Second and Third-class Labor and Resistance Medals; the Labor Medal for the Vietnam-Laos cooperation cause; the Golden Lion Medal of Senegal; along with certificates of merit from the Prime Minister, the United Nations and many other medals, orders and commemorative medals.

His passing has left his family, colleagues and millions of people with endless grief. In every rainy season, in the fields full of seeds, in the newly opened concrete roads in the countryside, his footprints are still present, simple, silent but full of responsibility.

Farewell to Le Huy Ngo, the Minister who devoted his whole life to the people, the fields, and the Vietnamese countryside.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, the funeral of Mr. Le Huy Ngo will be held from 9:00 to 11:00 on September 18, and the memorial service will be from 11:00 to 11:30 on the same day at the National Funeral Home, No. 5 Tran Thanh Tong, Hanoi.

Source: https://khoahocdoisong.vn/nguyen-bo-truong-le-huy-ngo-dau-an-mot-doi-vi-nong-dan-post2149053627.html