Many challenges in new rural construction

Before coming together, Thai Nguyen province had 115/121 communes, Bac Kan had 29/95 communes meeting new rural standards. By the end of June 2025, the two localities had 54 communes meeting advanced new rural standards, 12 communes meeting model new rural standards. After the arrangement of provincial administrative units and the implementation of the 2-level local government model, the National Target Program on new rural construction in Thai Nguyen province officially entered a new phase with a larger scale, higher requirements and many new challenges.

In order to increase the income of people in the northern communes of the province, including Con Minh, the authorities have implemented many models of hybrid corn cultivation that yield high productivity and economic efficiency.

Challenges to overcome

To strive towards achieving the goals and tasks for 2025, from the beginning of the year, the Departments of Agriculture and Environment of Thai Nguyen and Bac Kan provinces proactively and promptly advised the Provincial People's Committees to issue plans for implementing the National Target Program for New Rural Development in 2025. Specifically, Thai Nguyen province set a target of 2 communes achieving New Rural Development standards; Bac Kan province aims for 37 communes to achieve New Rural Development standards, 10 communes to achieve advanced New Rural Development standards, and 2 communes to achieve model New Rural Development standards.

Mr. Dang Van Huy, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Thai Nguyen province, said: "Before the merger, Thai Nguyen province had completed the objectives of the National Target Program for building new rural areas in the 2021-2025 period, with some indicators exceeding the set plan."

However, due to the implementation of the policy of restructuring and reorganizing the administrative apparatus and establishing a two-tiered local government model, the goal of building new rural areas set at the beginning of 2025 is no longer appropriate and lacks a basis for continued implementation. Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nam, Head of the Provincial Department of Cooperative Economics and Rural Development, stated: Most of the communes after the restructuring have larger areas and populations, and have not yet been able to develop a general plan, so the planning criteria have not been met. The number of communes after the mergers has decreased significantly, making the goal of building new rural areas set at the beginning of 2025 no longer suitable.

In addition to the factors mentioned above, some communes have merged with wards, making it impossible to organize assessments and recognition due to the lack of guidelines for these communes. Currently, the central government has not issued guidelines for implementing the New Rural Development Criteria at all levels, nor guidelines for reassessing, re-recognizing, or inheriting the results of New Rural Development construction for newly formed communes after mergers. Furthermore, there have been no adjustments to the goals and tasks of the National Target Program for New Rural Development in 2025 assigned to the provinces and cities after the mergers.

This is the reason why the Government organized the National Conference to summarize the National Target Program on Building New Rural Areas and the National Target Program on Sustainable Poverty Reduction for the period 2021-2025 on June 22nd. In Thai Nguyen, the conference summarizing these programs was held on June 25th.

Following the merger, the National Target Program for New Rural Development continues to be implemented. However, the criteria for new rural development will be adjusted to suit the actual situation. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that Thai Nguyen is facing many challenges. A review and assessment of the current status of the northern communes of the province (formerly Bac Kan province) shows that only 4 communes have met the new rural development standards, with none meeting the advanced or model new rural development standards.

Notably, 31 communes have not yet met the standards for New Rural Development, of which only 1 commune has met 15 or more criteria; 8 communes have met 10 to 14 criteria; and 19 communes have met 5 to 9 criteria. In particular, 3 communes have met fewer than 5 criteria: Nghiên Loan (3 criteria); Cao Minh and Đồng Phúc (4 criteria).

Farmers in Trang Xa commune are harvesting their spring rice crop.

Most of the northern localities in the province are Category III communes, located in ethnic minority and mountainous areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions, and the level of achievement of new rural development criteria remains low. Many criteria are in the "difficult" group, such as transportation, schools, cultural facilities, environment and food safety, and quality of life... In particular, the criteria on income and the multidimensional poverty rate require significant investment and a long implementation period.

Furthermore, after the administrative reorganization, the area and population of many communes have increased significantly, resulting in sparse population distribution. The volume of work required to meet the remaining criteria is enormous, while the ability to mobilize matching resources from the people remains limited. These factors make the journey to achieving the New Rural Area (NRA) goals even more challenging.

Achieving the set goals requires strong political will, the coordinated involvement of the entire political system, and sufficient investment resources. Above all, it is necessary to awaken the spirit of unity and cooperation among the people – the central subjects in building new rural areas.

Include targets in the resolution for the new term.

During the period 2026-2030, Thai Nguyen province aims to have 100% of its communes meet the standards of the New Rural Development program. According to Mr. Nguyen Thanh Binh, Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, this is a very high political determination, demonstrating the concern of the Provincial Party Committee and government for agriculture, farmers, and rural areas, especially for the communes in the North.

To achieve the goals of building new rural areas, incorporating relevant targets and tasks into the resolutions of the commune and provincial Party congresses for the 2025-2030 term is a necessary and strategic step. This not only concretizes the Party's major policies but also clearly demonstrates the Party's comprehensive and absolute leadership role in all aspects, including the construction of new rural areas. More importantly, this creates a solid political foundation, becoming a guiding principle for the entire political system to act and coordinate synchronously from the provincial to the grassroots level.

The appearance of the new rural area in Kha Son commune is becoming increasingly green, clean, and beautiful.

Based on regulations and guidelines from the central government, Thai Nguyen is continuing to review and improve its system of directive and operational documents, as well as specific provincial-level mechanisms and policies, ensuring they are in line with the new context, especially the requirements of digital transformation, green development, circular economy, and sustainability.

Mr. Nguyen Huu Quyet, Secretary of the Phu Lac Commune Party Committee: "Including the goals and targets of building new rural areas in the resolutions of the commune-level and provincial Party congresses for the 2025-2030 term will further enhance the role and responsibility of the Party committees, government, Fatherland Front, and political and social organizations. At the same time, it will link the responsibility of the heads of Party committees and governments in leading and directing the implementation of the new rural area construction."

According to Mr. Nguyen Thanh Nam, to effectively implement the New Rural Development Program in the new phase, Thai Nguyen needs to quickly develop appropriate investment mechanisms, focusing on increasing support for particularly disadvantaged communes with low achievement rates, especially those in the northern part of the province. Priority should be given to areas related to clean water, the environment, the application of green technologies, infrastructure development, rural tourism, and OCOP products. Alongside this, research and pilot implementation of flexible financial mechanisms, output-based support, and strong promotion of resource socialization are necessary to maximize community and business participation.

The province also needs to continue innovating and improving the effectiveness of information and communication work on building new rural areas, shifting strongly from traditional methods to the application of digital platforms. Communication needs to be carried out synchronously according to each component content, linked to key themes such as: digital transformation in agriculture, rural tourism development, the OCOP program, environmental protection, maintaining rural security and order… in order to raise awareness, create consensus and spread widely throughout society.

Implement synchronized solutions to effectively mobilize and integrate resources, including central and local budgets, private capital, credit, development funds, etc., ensuring timely allocation and supplementation of capital to meet implementation deadlines. Proactively develop mechanisms for allocating revenue, prioritizing it for rural development, especially in disadvantaged areas, contributing to narrowing the development gap between regions.

In addition, it is necessary to strengthen inspection, supervision, and evaluation of implementation at all levels and in all sectors. This will allow for the timely resolution of difficulties and obstacles, as well as the development of solutions to prevent and curb negative behaviors and waste, and to strictly handle violations arising during implementation.

During the period 2026-2035, the National Target Program for New Rural Development sets specific goals, reflecting the aspiration for inclusive, sustainable development and a focus on genuine quality. Specifically, the average per capita income in rural areas is expected to increase by at least 1.6 times compared to 2030, reaching approximately 168 million VND/person/year. The national multidimensional poverty rate is targeted to be reduced to below 1%.

The program aims for at least 95% of communes to meet the new rural development standards; of which 70% will meet the advanced new rural development standards and 25% will meet the modern new rural development standards. Notably, the program also aims for balanced development across regions by increasing the number of localities meeting the standards at the provincial level.

It is projected that by 2035, at least 15 provinces and cities nationwide will be recognized as having completed the New Rural Development program, with 8 to 10 of them achieving the standards of modern New Rural Development. These are dynamic goals that require the synchronized participation of the entire political system, along with the proactive and creative efforts of each locality and its people.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/kinh-te/202507/nhieu-thach-thuc-trong-xay-dung-nong-thon-moi-4615a15/