Ha Giang Agriculture and Countryside Development in Focus

Despite numerous difficulties, Ha Giang province still managed to achieve inspiring results thanks to the efforts of the political system, the determinations of all sectors, the close direction of the Provincial Party Committee, the Provincial People's Council and the Provincial People's Committee. The agricultural production was stable and growing. Crop and livestock structure has been developed as scheduled and expected. Increased productivity has helped improve the look of the countryside, reduce poverty in a sustainable manner, and gradually modernise the agriculture and rural areas. The production value of agriculture, forestry and fisheries was VND5,085 billion in 2013, an increase of 6.34 percent over a year earlier. Production value per hectare was VND​​36.5 million, VND6.5 million higher than that specified in the Resolution of the 15^th Provincial Party Congress and two years ahead of schedule.

 

In general, in recent years, due to limited State funding, the province has mobilised various investment resources for infrastructure development, mainly serving agriculture, farmers and rural development.

 

In the coming years, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development will advise the Provincial People's Committee to carry out mountainous rural infrastructure development investment programmes together with centrally funded projects (Programme 30a, Programme Phase 2 - Second phase) and ODA-funded agricultural projects. Enterprises are encouraged to invest to build processing and production facilities and material zones. The key contents will be: Building essential infrastructure works like small irrigation systems, water supply for rural people, rural roads, wholesale markets for agricultural products, and agricultural and forest product processing facilities; Carrying out the “New Countryside Construction Programme” with a focus on infrastructure development; Exercising good management over invested projects to ensure work quality and enhance investment efficiency; and decentralising rural infrastructure construction management to capable districts and communes. Besides, the department will consult the Provincial People's Committee to carry out the plan of strengthening management, operation, and maintenance of irrigation and water supply works in Ha Giang province in 2014 and 2015.

In recent years, the province has faced capital shortages for forestry development and forestation. Although the forest area has shrunk on lack of investment capital, the forest coverage still reached 53.4 percent. In the past three years, the province planted 19,685 ha of forests. In four rocky mountainous districts, the province continued to implement the forest protection and development project, approved by the Government. The project provided rice for forest growers in these districts. In 2013, the province granted 1,553.4 tonnes of rice to the four districts, fulfilling the plan. In addition to rice supply, the province planned to provide nearly 29,000 improved cooking stoves for forest growers from 2013 to 2015. To date, nearly 10,000 stoves have been delivered. The province planned to plant 4,400 ha of forests in 2014 and 4,100 ha in 2015 and replaced 4,807 ha. Ha Giang expects to have 32.992 ha of forests in 2015, or 50 percent of the plan, and will plant additional 33,000 ha later to bring the total forest acreage to 194,500 ha, or 100 percent of the plan.