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Co-operative model eyed at Delta meeting
A meeting to review the implementation of a project on cooperatives designed to help local residents move out of poverty was held yesterday in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.
Organised by the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and the Steering Board for the Southeast Region, the meeting was attended by representatives of the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development, Planning and Investment in the Mekong Delta and the Union of Cooperatives of Viet Nam.
The cooperative project is centered on the collective economic sector, especially agricultural cooperatives.
Dang Huy Dong, Deputy Minister for Planning and Investment, said the project also helped local residents and members of the community understand the importance of working together to improve their livelihoods.
According to an MPI report, individual economies in the area of rice, fruit and aquaculture cultivation have been successful, but many local residents in the region are still poor due to low incomes.
The causes of the low incomes were identified to be the lack of quality seeds and breeding animals; outdated modes of cultivation and the low level of technical know-how and the absence of modern machinery and equipment.
Also, the lack of stable and quality materials for production, and low prices for their products due to pressure from traders have also contributed to the poverty levels.
Dong said there had been a lack of close cooperation among households or private enterprises, and a lack of support from organisations and units that can help people conduct business more effectively.
"The cooperative mode is a very suitable one to solve this problem," Dong said, adding members are provided with input materials at soft prices and support in technological production and consumption.
Because of these advantages, cooperatives are critical in helping farmers become more close-knit, thus improving their living standards.
The Cuu Long River Delta has three types of cooperatives, one in rice cultivation, another in catfish raising and a third in orchards. These are all agricultural strengths of the region.
Duong Quoc Xuan, deputy head of the South West Steering Committee, said the Delta has 13 provinces with more than 1,314 cooperatives, employing 23,260 people.
There are 45,000 cooperative groups involved in agricultural and seafood production and 3,280 farms (accounting for 14 per cent of the country's total).
"The local cooperative economic sector has made active contributions to socio-economic development, poverty reduction and hunger eradication in local provinces," Xuan said.
However, he pointed out that some cooperatives were operating ineffectively, most of which are located in rural and remote areas.
In some localities, state management agencies had not yet paid sufficient attention to carrying out the Government's cooperative development policies as well as giving proper assistance to existing cooperatives, according to Xuan.
As a result, the products from these cooperatives have not been highly competitive in the market.
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