General Secretary To Lam: The Agriculture and Environment sectors have a special strategic position.

VTV.vn - The agriculture and environment sector has a special strategic position. Over the past 80 years, the sector has accompanied the nation, becoming one of the pillars of the economy and the foundation of livelihoods.

On the morning of November 12, in Hanoi, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment held the 80th Anniversary of the Agriculture and Environment sector (1945 - 2025) and the 1st Patriotic Emulation Congress.

General Secretary To Lam attended and spoke at the ceremony.

General Secretary To Lam attended the 80th Anniversary of the Traditional Day of the Agriculture and Environment Sector; the First Patriotic Emulation Congress.

Also attending were: Former Politburo member, former General Secretary Nong Duc Manh; former Politburo member, former President Truong Tan Sang; Politburo member, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh; former Politburo member, former Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung; former Politburo members, former National Assembly Chairmen: Nguyen Sinh Hung, Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan; former Politburo members, former Standing members of the Secretariat: Phan Dien, Tran Quoc Vuong.

General Secretary To Lam, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and other leaders, former leaders of the Party and State and delegates attended the ceremony.

Attending the event were comrades: Phan Dinh Trac, Politburo member, Secretary of the Party Central Committee, Head of the Party Central Committee's Internal Affairs Commission; Nguyen Van Nen, Politburo member, Standing member of the Party's XIV National Congress Document Subcommittee; Nguyen Xuan Thang, Politburo member, Director of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, Chairman of the Central Theoretical Council; Nguyen Hoa Binh, Politburo member, Permanent Deputy Prime Minister; comrades of the Party Central Committee, Party and State leaders, leaders of central and local departments, ministries, branches, international organizations, enterprises, associations, and generations of cadres, civil servants, public employees, and workers of the industry.

Contribute to building a green, strong and developed Vietnam

Speaking at the ceremony, Party Central Committee member and Minister of Agriculture and Environment Tran Duc Thang affirmed that the past 80 years have been a glorious and proud journey - an epic of will, intelligence, and aspiration to contribute of generations of cadres, civil servants, public employees, and workers in the Agriculture and Environment sector, contributing to building a green, strong, and developed Vietnam.

Through war, reconstruction and renovation, the agricultural sector has become the pillar of the national economy, transforming Vietnam from a country with food shortages into one of the world's leading agricultural exporters. From innovation policies such as Contract 100, Contract 10, to the 1993 Land Law and the New Rural Development Program, Vietnamese agriculture has grown steadily, making important contributions to growth, social stability and sustainable poverty reduction.

At the same time, the Agriculture and Environment sector is constantly improving its institutions, laws and development strategies, becoming a pillar of sustainable development, linking resource management and environmental protection with green growth and climate change response.

The year 2025 marks a new historical milestone when the 15th National Assembly decided to merge the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, forming the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment from March 1, 2025. This is a step demonstrating the strategic vision of the Party and State to manage, exploit and use national resources more effectively, meeting the requirements of rapid and sustainable development in the new era.

After the merger, the Ministry quickly reorganized, stabilized the apparatus, and ensured smooth, effective, and efficient operations. Patriotic emulation movements continued to spread strongly, creating a vibrant atmosphere, encouraging the entire sector to overcome difficulties and successfully complete assigned political tasks. Many typical movements were promoted and expanded such as: "The whole country joins hands to build new rural areas", "The whole country joins hands for the poor - leaving no one behind", "Innovation and digital transformation in the Agriculture and Environment sector", "Enriching and cleaning up land databases" and "Actions to reduce plastic and nylon pollution"...

Over the past 5 years, the entire sector has been awarded: 15 National Emulation Fighters; 65 Emulation Flags of the Government; 4 Independence Medals; 379 Labor Medals of various ranks; 606 Certificates of Merit from the Prime Minister; thousands of titles, certificates of merit, and commemorative medals from the Minister. On the occasion of the 80th anniversary, the Agriculture and Environment sector was honored to receive the First Class Labor Medal, and at the same time commended 30 cooperatives, 24 typical farmers and farm owners; 57 collectives and 151 typical advanced individuals in the patriotic emulation movement for the period 2020 - 2025.

General Secretary To Lam gave a directive speech.

Speaking at the ceremony, General Secretary To Lam emphasized that the agriculture and environment sectors have a special strategic position. Therefore, developing agriculture and protecting natural resources and the environment are not simply economic tasks, but also political, cultural, social, security and defense tasks.

The General Secretary affirmed that, after 80 years of construction, fighting and growing, the Agriculture and Environment sector has always accompanied the history of the nation, becoming a pillar of the economy, the foundation of livelihood and now an important factor in the development and transformation of the country in the new era of development. These achievements are the crystallization of the intelligence, efforts and enthusiasm of generations of Vietnamese cadres, workers, farmers, intellectuals and enterprises, along with the close leadership and direction of the Party and State.

On behalf of the Party and State leaders, the General Secretary commended the achievements that all cadres, civil servants, public employees and workers of the Agriculture and Environment sector have achieved through emulation movements in the 2020 - 2025 period and throughout the 80-year history of construction, growth and development of the sector.

The General Secretary pointed out that, in addition to the very proud results, we must also look directly at the reality that the Agriculture and Environment sector is facing many difficulties and major, complex challenges, intertwined between economic development, resource management and environmental protection. Challenges related to resources, environment, climate change, and the inherent limitations of agriculture and rural areas are becoming major bottlenecks that hinder the goal of rapid and sustainable development. This is not only an economic and technical issue but also a political, social, security and development ethics issue, requiring a strategic vision and stronger and more decisive actions in the new period.

Faced with new requirements for national construction and defense, and with intertwined opportunities and challenges, the General Secretary requested that the Agriculture and Environment sector continue to innovate its thinking, act more decisively and effectively, and make worthy contributions to the success of the 14th National Party Congress and the prosperous and sustainable development of the country.

Continue to perfect institutions and policies - lay the strategic foundation for the new period

The General Secretary requested that the Agriculture and Environment sector continue to perfect institutions and policies - laying a strategic foundation for the new period; accelerate the summary and full institutionalization of the Party's policies on agriculture, farmers, rural areas; resource management, environmental protection, and climate change response into the legal system; continue to perfect the legal system on land, water resources, minerals, and environmental protection; ensure synchronization, stability, feasibility, and harmony of State - people - business interests. Land must continue to be identified as a special national asset, owned by the entire people and managed by the State; used for the right purposes, effectively, publicly, transparently, without loss, corruption, or disguised privatization. Establish a mechanism to control power, publicly, transparently in planning, land allocation, land lease, land use conversion, and resource exploitation; and not allow group interests, corruption, or waste to occur.

General Secretary To Lam awarded the First Class Labor Medal to the Agriculture and Environment sector.

Science and technology, innovation, digital transformation and data must become key driving forces; put science and technology at the heart of agricultural production, from plant and animal varieties, biotechnology, automation, to traceability, logistics, digital commerce; encourage the model of "scientists - enterprises - cooperatives - farmers" to participate in the value chain; agricultural extension must be linked to fields and production facilities, not just stopping at calling for movements.

The General Secretary emphasized the need to plan, manage and use resources effectively - protect the living environment. The Agriculture and Environment sector needs to strictly manage, regulate fairly, restore the ecosystems of rivers, lakes, underground water sources, control pollution; proactively adapt to climate change, especially in the Mekong Delta, North Central, Central Highlands, and coastal areas; upgrade irrigation systems, dykes, and reservoirs; apply flood, landslide, and salinity warning technology; restore protective forests, mangrove forests, and conserve biodiversity; make "nature a companion of development"; coordinate to thoroughly handle environmental pollution hotspots in large cities, industrial parks, craft villages, and river basins.

Unleashing resources - strongly reforming administrative procedures - promoting the strength of people and businesses, the General Secretary requested to thoroughly handle "bottlenecks and bottlenecks": complicated administrative procedures; overlaps in land, resource and environmental management; difficulties in accessing capital, land, science and technology for farmers and businesses; promoting decentralization and delegation of power associated with resource allocation and power control; mobilizing social resources, businesses, cooperatives, and the private economy to invest in green agriculture, processing industry, renewable energy, and circular economy. Natural resources - especially land, water, forests, and seas - must be put into development, creating material, infrastructure, and financial value for the country.

The General Secretary suggested restructuring the agricultural sector towards ecology - high added value, shifting agriculture from extensive to intensive development, from increasing output to improving quality, added value, and building brands. Strongly developing ecological, organic, circular agriculture, applying high technology. Linking production with deep processing and modern trade. Building national brands, expanding markets, participating more deeply in the world agricultural value chain and the world market. Developing a model new rural ecosystem: synchronous infrastructure, rich cultural life, clean environment, maintaining security and order, civilized rural society.

General Secretary To Lam awarded the First Class Labor Medal to the Agriculture and Environment sector.

The General Secretary emphasized the need to build a streamlined organization - a team of dedicated, intelligent, and people-oriented cadres. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment must more quickly perfect its organization, operate smoothly, effectively, and efficiently; build a team of honest, professional, dedicated, impartial, and responsible civil servants; strengthen training and fostering of cadres and experts specializing in agricultural economics, natural resources, environment, and climate; especially pay attention to grassroots cadres - people close to the people, close to the fields. Agricultural extension work must be deeply innovated - not only propaganda but must be an "extended arm" of science and policy to each field and each farmer's household.

80 years is a glorious journey, but ahead is a greater responsibility. The General Secretary believes that the Agriculture and Environment sector will continue to promote its glorious tradition; strongly innovate its thinking; act decisively and effectively; dare to think, dare to do, dare to take responsibility; unite as one, make the greatest effort to make worthy contributions to the common success of the country.

The General Secretary called on all cadres, civil servants, public employees, workers in the Industry; scientists, businessmen, cooperatives, farmers nationwide to continue to unite and be more creative, successfully achieve the set goals, successfully build the model of "Ecological agriculture - Modern countryside - Civilized farmers"; "Manage, exploit and use natural resources effectively"; "Protect the ecological environment, preserve every river, inch of land, forest, mountain, sacred sea of ​​the Fatherland"; build a rich and beautiful country; improve the material and spiritual life of the people; contribute more and more to the rapid and sustainable development of the country.

On this occasion, General Secretary To Lam awarded the First Class Labor Medal to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment for its outstanding achievements in GDP growth in the Agriculture and Environment sector, making great contributions to the country's socio-economic development, contributing to the cause of building socialism and protecting the Fatherland.

At the ceremony, Minister of Agriculture and Environment Tran Duc Thang launched an emulation movement, calling on all cadres, civil servants, public employees and workers of the sector across the country to constantly compete in innovation and creativity; turn pride into strength, turn aspirations into concrete actions; and be determined to excellently complete all tasks entrusted by the Party, State and people.

Minister of Agriculture and Environment Tran Duc Thang affirmed that the entire agriculture and environment sector will unite, make persistent efforts, and join hands to build a strong, prosperous, green and sustainable Vietnam; so that our homeland will become "more dignified and more beautiful" as beloved Uncle Ho always wished.

Source: https://vtv.vn/tong-bi-thu-to-lam-nganh-nong-nghiep-va-moi-truong-co-vi-tri-chien-luoc-dac-biet-100251112120453538.htm