Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Minister
of Agriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan told a ministry meeting in
Hanoi on September 6 that the sector could achieve this year’s 3.5 percent
growth target, set the Prime Minister.
The PM set agro-forestry-fisheries exports
hitting 33 billion USD and 31 percent of communes meeting new rural development
criteria.
In the first eight months this year,
agro-forestry-fisheries exports rose 13.5 percent year-on-year to 23.7 billion
USD, 5.1 billion USD of which was from the shipment of aquatic products, up
18.1 percent annually. Total aquatic
exports this year are estimated to hit 8 billion USD, a billion USD more than
2016.
Nguyen Duy Vinh, deputy head of the
ministry’s Planning Department, said the sector has focused on restructuring and
choosing key products at national, regional and provincial levels while
expanding export markets, popularising Vietnamese farm produce and improving
food hygiene and safety.
According to the Cultivation Department,
rice production nationwide is likely to increase by 250,000 – 300,000 tonnes
annually to 44.1 million tonnes this year.
Tuan said the values of animal breeding,
fisheries and forestry are expected to expand by 3 percent, 5 percent and 6.6
percent, respectively.
On new rural development,
up to 2,813 communes met 19 criteria as of the late August, or 31.5 percent,
surpassing the target. Meanwhile, 34 districts were recognised as new-style
rural areas. Between now and the year’s end, four districts will achieve the
status.