The northern province of Ha Nam has offered incentives for Japaneseinvestment in hi-tech local agricultural production, Secretary of theprovincial Party Committee Mai Tien Dung has said.

During a reception on July 28 for a group from the Japanese SeibuNousan Company who are visiting Vietnam to seek investment opportunitiesin the province, Dung said the locality has focused on improvinginfrastructure facilities such as roads and electricity and irrigationsystems to facilitate Japanese investment.

Asmany as 56 hectares have been zoned off to grow the high-yield and highquality Japonica rice variety in the province, Dung said, adding thatthe traditional farming techniques have resulted in low productivity.

He urged the company to introduce advancedtechnologies in the production process to enhance the productivity andquality of the rice.

Director of Seibu NousanVietnam Akira Ichikawa hailed the local agricultural potential andbusiness climate, especially incentives for Japanese investors.

He expressed his wish to grow the rice variety on 20 trial hectareswith the application of technology and strict quality managementprocedures.

The company is also willing totransfer technology to the locality in a bid to raise the quality oflocal rice for domestic demand and export.

The Seibu Nousan Company, established 30 years ago, has developed 830 hectares of rice and other crops in Japan.

The company opened its branch in Vietnam early this year.-VNA