Two ministers agree to propose establishing a National Rice Council

Minister Le Minh Hoan and Minister Nguyen Hong Dien co-chaired the conference - Photo: C.TUỆ

On the afternoon of August 6, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Industry and Trade met to discuss the draft proposal to establish a National Rice Council. Minister Le Minh Hoan and Minister Nguyen Hong Dien co-chaired the meeting.

According to the draft proposal to establish the National Rice Council, the Deputy Prime Minister will be the chairman of the council, the Minister of Industry and Trade will be the permanent vice chairman, and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development will be the vice chairman.

The members are representatives of leaders of ministries, leaders of the Vietnam Farmers' Union, Vietnam Food Association, Vietnam Rice Industry Association, People's Committees of some provinces of Thai Binh , Nam Dinh, Ho Chi Minh City, 13 localities in the Mekong Delta region and some enterprises.

The National Rice Council is an inter-sectoral coordination organization that advises the Prime Minister on research, direction, and coordination to resolve important inter-sectoral issues related to the development of the rice industry.

The draft also sets out a number of tasks for the National Rice Council, such as researching and proposing to the Government and the Prime Minister policies, strategies, mechanisms, and transparent and effective policies to ensure stability and market development for the rice industry.

Research, advise, recommend, and propose to the Prime Minister directions and solutions to solve important issues of the industry. Assist the Government and the Prime Minister in coordinating, urging, and inspecting the implementation of inter-sectoral strategies, programs, mechanisms, policies, and projects on rice.

At the same time, closely coordinate with ministries and branches to collect information, analyze and evaluate the production and export situation of the rice industry.

At the conference, opinions from associations, businesses, and localities all agreed on the establishment of the National Rice Council for sustainable development of the rice industry and higher income for farmers.

According to Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan, a national rice council is needed to advise on policies and handle emerging issues in the Vietnamese rice industry.

"Suppose India reopens rice exports, what will be Vietnam's policy response? We must take action immediately. With today's thinking, no single sector is capable of solving a problem, it must be inter-sectoral.

The National Rice Council is a unit that plans and advises on major policies, advises on solving arising problems, diplomatic issues, and the image of the rice industry for the Government and the Prime Minister to develop the rice industry sustainably," said Mr. Hoan.

Concluding the conference, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien emphasized that Vietnam's rice industry today not only plays an important role in national food security but also becomes a rice exporting powerhouse in the world and is also an industry that contributes to building the national brand.

However, Vietnam's rice industry still has many limitations such as fragmented production, not yet advanced technology, and low income of rice farmers. Rice exports still depend on traditional markets and have not diversified markets...

The reason is that the rice production industry still lacks a stable and solid development strategy and policy. State investment in rice production and export is not commensurate.

Many export enterprises lack professionalism, compete unfairly, and do not make efforts to capture and develop the market.

Coordination between levels, sectors, localities, industry associations and businesses is not good...

"From the above analysis and towards a multi-value rice industry, with diverse products, diverse markets, diverse supply sources, and increased value for rice growers... a national rice council is needed to have effective coordination regulations between ministries, branches, localities, associations, and industries in coordinating common activities for national rice production, business, and export" - Mr. Dien said, adding that the two ministries will absorb comments from ministries, branches, and localities to complete and soon submit to the Government for consideration.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hai-bo-truong-dong-tinh-de-xuat-thanh-lap-hoi-dong-lua-gao-quoc-gia-20240806155750137.htm