Vietnam calls for int’l assistance in rural development

Vietnam needs international assistance for a programme to develop a new model in rural areas in the 2010-2010 period, with an estimated average of between 120-150 billion VND for each commune.

The call was made by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) at a workshop held in Hanoi on Sept. 16 to consult with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and other international organisations.

According to Tang Minh Loc, Vice Head of MARD’s Department for Cooperative and Rural Development, the programme aims to develop socio-economic infrastructure in rural areas, combine agricultural with industrial, services and urban development, and improve people’s living conditions.

Loc said his ministry is drafting 11 projects on rural development, focusing on poverty reduction, education-training, and health care.

MARD Deputy Minister Ho Xuan Hung said the programme will first prioritise 797 communes in poor districts under a governmental resolution. He said the programme will have a hefty price tag so Vietnam expects to receive assistance from international organisations to set up a fund for rural development.

Representatives from the World Bank, IFAD and the Irish Embassy shared their concerns about capital disbursement in Vietnam ’s programmes and projects, particularly those on rural infrastructure.

According to them, the disbursement rates of Vietnam ’s programmes and projects are still slow due to procedural obstacles, particularly in agriculture and rural development field.

Deputy Minister Hung pledged to propose to the Government a change to regulations in order to remove these obstacles.

Vietnam targets having at least 20 percent out of a total of nearly 10,000 communes nationwide reach the new rural model’s standards, to raise farmers’ incomes by 50 percent, and reduce the rate of poor households to below 8 percent by 2015.

By 2020, half of the communes will meet the standards, farmers’ incomes will be doubled and the number of poor households will be kept under 3 percent.

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