Hanoi (VNA) - The Ministry of Planningand Investment (MPI) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)will co-organise a conference on July 30 to discuss solutions for thedevelopment of the agricultural sector and open the door for investment fromthe private sector.

The conference will be held in the Central Highlandsprovince of Lam Dong and chaired by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, the MPIsaid at a press conference on July 27.

The upcoming conference will be an opportunityfor the Government, the PM, Government agencies, local authorities, companiesand associations to review and evaluate investment projects, achievements,issues, problems, challenges and solutions to increase private investment inthe sector in the future.

The conference is expected to show theGovernment’s focus on the agricultural sector, which many consider has room forfurther development.

At the conference, the Government will discussDecree 57/2018/ND-CP dated April 17, 2018 encouraging private companies to makeinvestments in the sector and listen to their problems, challenges andrecommendations.

According to Deputy Minister of Planning andInvestment Vu Dai Thang, agriculture is an important sector for Vietnam and hashelp improve the lives of farmers while contributing to the country’s economicgrowth.

Vietnam became the world’s largest agriculturalexporter in 2017. Of the total export value, fisheries accounted for 8.3billion USD, followed by cashew nuts (3.5 billion USD), fruits and vegetables (3.5billion USD), coffee (3.24 billion USD), rice (2.6 billion USD) and pepper (1.1billion USD).

By the end of the last quarter, more than 49,600private companies had made investments in the agricultural sector, accountingfor 8 percent of the total number of private firms in the country.

However, most of those firms were onlymicro-sized businesses, accounting for 92.35 percent of the total firms makinginvestments in the sector. They were followed by large-scale (6 percent) andmedium-sized firms (2 percent).

Private companies in the agricultural sectorhave employed more than 4.5 million people, accounting for 32.5 percent of Vietnam’stotal workforce.

Companies that have invested in the agriculturalsector face disasters and diseases, making their businesses more highly riskyand vulnerable than others. They have also reported problems regardinginsufficient land, limited supporting industries and problematic administrativeprocedures.-VNA