Quoc Oai Aims for Advance Rural Development

After completing new rural development, Quoc Oai district is now continuing to strive for advanced and model rural communes. With strong involvement from the Party, government and entire political system, as well as active community participation, the district has mobilized significant resources to improve rural infrastructure.

Quoc Oai District has mobilized resources to enhance rural infrastructure

Mobilizing various resources

Building advanced new rural areas and exemplary new rural areas is not only the work of authorities at all levels but also the work of all people, for the benefit of all people. Therefore, it is necessary to step up communications to make everyone understand the purpose and meaning of advanced new rural areas and model new rural areas as well as the rights, interests and responsibilities of authorities of all levels, sectors, businesses in the district, successful people living far from home and local people, to engage their efforts and money in this cause.

Mr. Nguyen Van Tho, Secretary of Quoc Oai Party Committee, said: Immediately after the Hanoi Party Committee issued Program 04, and the Standing Board of the Quoc Oai Party Committee launched Program 17-CTr/HU dated May 28, 2021 with 31 targets and Plan 43-KH/HU dated May 28, 2021 on “Building advanced new rural areas and model new rural areas, developing agricultural economy, improving the quality of farmers' livelihoods in 2021-2025”, the district announced decisions and plans to direct and assign tasks to its members.

With the engagement of the entire political system from the district level to the commune level, the deep understanding and active support of local businesses and people, huge resources have been unlocked for infrastructure construction. Village roads and alleys have been solidified. Irrigation systems have been newly constructed and basically repaired to meet production requirements. Cultural institutions have been upgraded. Medical stations are standardized in both equipment and personnel. The economy has shifted towards increasing the share of services and industry, but agriculture is still valued and invested.

Accordingly, the Quoc Oai People's Committee adopted an action plan, assigned competent agencies to carry out its targets, directed communes to reach the finish line of advanced new rural communes and model new rural communes to work out detailed plans to assign tasks to civil servants and organizations to execute their tasks to fulfill the plan to ensure progress. New rural development management boards of communes based on the plan to inform their Party cells, organizations and people of those tasks.

The Fatherland Front Committee and local organizations in Quoc Oai mobilized the community for environmental campaigns, promoting clean, green and eco-friendly villages. They also led efforts to fight COVID-19, support the poor, and promote cultural and family values, alongside annual district activities. The district also organized visits and provided gifts to policy-benefited and disadvantaged families.

The Quoc Oai Women's Union launched a movement to protect the environment and treat municipal solid waste at the source and nine models of "Women living green - sorting and treating municipal solid waste at the source” to propagate the content of the two campaigns - "All people unite to build new rural areas and civilized urban areas" and "Vietnamese people prioritize using Vietnamese goods" - to more than 1,000 grassroots union officers and distribute more than 3,000 leaflets on the criteria of advanced new rural development standards model new rural development standards to members.

The representative of the Quoc Oai Coordination Office for New Rural Development said: Up to now, communes that have planned to fulfill exemplary and advanced new rural development standards by 2024, like Sai Son, Ngoc My, Ngoc Liep, Can Huu and Phu Man, have focused on completing the criteria and preparing to measure public satisfaction to complete dossiers to propose authorities to recognize fulfilled communes. The remaining communes that have targeted advanced new rural development standards and model new rural development standards in the 2024-2025 period are actively reviewing the criteria to lead, direct and engage the entire political system and the people to work together to build advanced and exemplary new rural areas according to the announced roadmap.

Effort to accomplish the targets

New rural development is one of the important goals and tasks stated in the resolution of the 23rd Quoc Oai Party Congress of the 2021-2025 term. Accordingly, the district has striven to have eight communes certified to meet advanced new rural standards by 2025.

From 2016 to 2023, Ngoc My commune mobilized more than VND156.4 billion for new rural development, of which VND144.6 billion came from the State budget and over VND11.8 billion was from other sources and the people. In 2023, the income per capita was over VND71 million, an increase of VND40 million from 2015. All commune roads and inter-village roads are hardened, concreted and asphalted. All alleys are hardened, concreted and lit. Clinics meet the medical standards imposed by the Ministry of Health. Schools satisfy national standards at level 1 and level 2. All villages have cultural houses and common grounds for cultural activities. Over 95% of people have health insurance policies. 100% of rural households have access to clean water.

Hence, Ngoc My commune has achieved and basically met the criteria of exemplary advanced new rural area and is completing remaining criteria to propose competent authorities for official recognition by the end of 2024. Ngoc Liep commune has 14 completely achieved criteria, four basically achieved criteria and an unachieved criterion in advanced new rural development. The commune is currently striving to raise the score of environmental criteria and completing the criteria in terms of traffic, irrigation, disaster prevention, commercial infrastructure and production. Can Huu commune has met eight out of 19 criteria for an advanced new rural commune, with nine more nearly achieved and two remaining unmet. The commune is committed to fulfilling the remaining criteria to complete its advanced new rural development goals.

Vice Chairman of Quoc Oai People's Committee Pham Quang Tuan said, in new rural development, the district always sees the people as the core. Therefore, implementation always ensures the principle of “people know, people discuss, people do, people check and oversee, and people benefit.”

To have advanced new rural communes a year ahead of schedule stated in the resolution of the 23rd Quoc Oai Party Congress, the district is focusing on prioritizing planned investment resources on upgrading infrastructure for communes to reach the finish line in 2024. Besides, Quoc Oai already assigned criteria personnel to closely follow grassroots units to have prompt solutions to emerging obstacles and fulfill all the criteria according to the given roadmap.

By Ngoc Dan, Vietnam Business Forum