Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has requested ministries, localities and businesses strengthen cooperation to develop agricultural mechanization and processing of agricultural products.
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| Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc speaks at the teleconference__Photo: VNA |
Speaking at a teleconference with ministries, sectors and localities on promoting the development of the agricultural product processing industry and mechanization in Hanoi on February 21, the PM said Vietnam has not yet focused on developing those fields.
Vietnam aims to rank among the world’s top 15 most developed agricultural countries and become a global hub for agricultural logistics and processing.
Meanwhile, at present, agriculture has used a large labor force, mainly unskilled labor and has a low level of mechanization, leading to low productivity.
Therefore, the State will develop policies to remove difficulties and promote the development of those fields, he said.
The Prime Minister urged the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to submit to him a strategy on developing mechanization and processing in the agricultural sector by 2030.
This ministry must also submit to the PM plans on developing the processing industry for vegetables, fruits, seafood, timber and wood products. Those plans will help Vietnam become one of the five leading producers of those products globally, he said.
Meanwhile, the Government will amend existing decrees to promote mechanization in agriculture.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade must also implement a strategy to develop Vietnam's mechanical engineering industry, including tractors and machines for cultivation, preservation and processing of agricultural, forestry and fishery products.
The Prime Minister also asked credit institutions to have more funding sources for rural and agricultural development, especially for enterprises and projects in the fields of agricultural mechanization and farming, forestry and fishery product processing.
PM Phuc said localities must find measures to develop organic agriculture using high technology.
At the conference, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said Vietnam must enhance agricultural product processing and agricultural mechanization to increase added value and competitiveness of farming products.
The application of science and technology for agricultural production and quality management will ensure control of quality, food safety and traceability for farming products, Cuong said.
The quality of human resources for the agricultural product processing industry and agricultural mechanization should be improved, he said.
According to the minister, the sector also needs to focus on developing clusters for production and processing of agricultural products in localities, especially regions with large agricultural output.
At present, the rate of mechanization has reached 94 percent in the stage of preparing land for production, 42 percent in the sowing and planting stage, 77 percent in the stage of breeding animals and planting trees and 65 per cent in the harvest stage.
Many localities have formed and developed agricultural production and processing chains. Now, Vietnam has about 7,500 enterprises of processing agricultural products with medium- and large-scales.- (VNA/VLLF)
