Hoa Binh (VNA) – The northernmountainous region has recorded improvements under the national targetprogramme on new-style rural area building, but it is still facing moredifficulties and challenges than other regions.

The assessment was made at a meeting held in HoaBinh province on August 3 to review 10 years of the programme implementation inthe region.

The national target programme, initiated by theGovernment in 2010, sets 19 criteria on different aspects, aiming to boost thedevelopment of rural regions of Vietnam. The number of criteria was increasedto 20 in 2015.

At the meeting, Minister of Agriculture andRural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong, deputy head of the central steeringcommittee for national target programmes for 2016-2020, noted the northernmountainous region comprises 14 provinces that account for 28.75 percent ofVietnam’s area and are home to over 30 ethnic groups. 

The region is critically important to the wholecountry in terms of economy, society and security-defence, while holdingpotential and advantages in agriculture, forestry, hydropower, mineral, tourismand border gate economy.

However, he also noted this region’s complex terrainalong with its underdeveloped infrastructure and socio-economic aspects, addingthat after nine years of the new-style rural area building programme, thelocalities are still facing more difficulties and challenges compared to otherregions.

As of the end of June 2019, 603 communes, or26.45 percent of the total 2,280 communes in the northern mountainous region,were recognised as new-style rural areas, up 18.34 percent from 2015 but stilllower than the national average of 50.26 percent. The local rate is likely toreach 28 percent at this year’s end.

Each commune in the region met 12.28 criteria onaverage, up 8.32 criteria from 2011 and 2.9 from 2015. Meanwhile, the number ofcriteria satisfied by a commune in the country averaged 15.26, Cuong said.

Across the region, six district-level localitieshave obtained the new-style rural area status, becoming an encouragement toothers in this work, he noted, commenting that this fact shows new-stylecountryside building efforts completely can gain widespread success even indisadvantaged areas, not only in several communes with more advantages.

The official also pointed out that despiteimprovements, there is a big gap in this work, especially in remote and borderhamlets and villages, and the gap tends to become wider compared to otherregions in Vietnam.

The rate of communes meeting all the criteria is82.74 percent in the Red River Delta, 70 percent in the southeastern region,45.82 percent in the southern central coastal region, and 42.77 percent in theMekong Delta. However, five of the six provinces with under-20 percent rate arelocated in the northern mountainous region, namely Ha Giang, Cao Bang, Bac Kan,Son La and Dien Bien. Up to 61.3 percent of the communes meeting less than 10criteria in the country are also in this region.

The central steering committee has set the aim thatfor 2021-2025, at least one province in the region will complete buildingnew-style rural areas, and each of the local provinces will have at least onedistrict-level locality recognised as a new-style rural area. 

Meanwhile, fundamental infrastructure liketransport, electricity and water facilities, along with schools and clinics,will be upgraded and inter-connected. The living standards of local ruralresidents will also have to be improved with the average per capita incomerising by at least 1.8-fold from 2020, according to the committee. -VNA