A planning for new rural development of Thanh Tân commune in Kiến Xương District

(VOVworld) As part of the series about measures to implement the National Targets Program on New Rural Development, this week, we’ll introduce to you the country’s master plan for new rural development. To date, 60% of the total communes nationwide have completed their master-plans. Vinh Phuc, and Thai Binh in the north and An Giang in the south have finalized detailed plans for production zones and commune centers. VOV now delves into the issue.

By 2010, detailed planning was completed for new rural development in 11 pilot communes across the country. To supplement start-up capital from the Government, provinces have mobilized investment in infrastructure construction. Eight of the 11 pilot villages have basically transformed their rural areas, boosting local economic growth and improving people’s living conditions. The income of villagers in pilot communes has risen 60%. Tang Minh Loc, Director of the Rural Development and Economic Cooperation Department, says ''51% of more than 9,100 communes have been designing master plans. About 20% of them conform to 2015 criteria for new rural areas. Although a majority of villages have developed master plans, we still need to give them guidance in creating detailed programs. Detailed plans require both know-how and money. In the past two years, we have selected the communes which will be done first. The consulting agencies should be more active in helping those communes find investment sources'.

Changes in the pilot communes have helped the Government, ministries, and relevant agencies supplement policies and mechanisms to timely settle arising obstacles faced by the test villages and spread the model nationwide. Loc says that the implementation of the planning has been evaluated based on 19 criteria approved by the Government ''The planning should ensure a sustainable growth. One of the compulsory regulations set by the Prime Minister is that by 2012 communes across the country should basically complete planning on new rural areas. In other words, planning must be the start, a prerequisite condition in new rural development. The decision was made following many years when our rural areas developed spontaneously and chaotically due to a lack of planning. This resulted in the destruction of natural landscape, environmental pollution, and the disappearance of much traditional culture'.

In a recent online meeting with provincial and municipal leaders on applying the national target program, Deputy PM Vu Van Ninh said that at any locality, if local authorities pay close attention to the implementation process, the results will be of good quality. In the short term, Ninh called on communes nationwide to complete master-plans with a focus on planning for production, the root of all issues while increasing communications to improve the awareness of the public and grassroots officials. Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh stresses ''The National Target Program on New Rural Areas is one of the key solutions to implementing a central resolution on agriculture, farmers and rural areas. The program is being realized so we should exert the greatest effort despite difficulties. We should mobilize the whole political system to participate, and make people aware of their role as both master and subject of the program. Relevant agencies and authorities at all levels should guide the implementation in the way best adopted to local conditions’.

The planning should match each locality’s circumstances. Local leaders are not the persons to make the decision. Local people themselves know what they need and should be the ones to decide.

Lan Anh