International Support Group (ISG)

Policies determined by the Government at the Decree No 42/2012/NĐ-CP dated11/05/2012 on rice cultivation land utilization includes: minimize the conversion of water rice cultivation land to non-agriculture land; encourage the land reclamation to widen water rice cultivation land area; transform other rice cultivation land to water rice cultivation land.

Prime Minister has just signed the Decision No21/2012/QĐ-TTg dated10/05/2012 transforming the Central Fund for Enterprise Arrangement to the Support Fund for Enterprise Arrangement and Development in order to reach the synchronous and effective management of the revenues selected from the state capital contributions from enterprises including the revenues from rearrangement of 100% state capital enterprises.

Model of public-private partnership PPP for sustainable agriculture (agricultural PPP) was established on the basis of the initiative "a new vision in agriculture," by WEF with the participation of 15 international business, multi-national company (ADM, Bunge, Cargill Inc., Cisco Vietnam, DuPont Vietnam, METRO Cash & Carry Vietnam, Nestlé, PepsiCo Vietnam, Monsanto Vietnam, Swiss Re, Syngenta Asia Pacific, Unilever Vietnam, Yara International.…)  and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. This model have been operated in 05 working groups including tea, coffee, vegetables, fishery and industry group which share the same deployment and commodity experience in Vietnam (common commodity group). The effective operation of these groups brought encouragement achievements, details as below:

The consultation meeting on “Agricultural sectoral restructuring towards improved quality, greater added value and sustainable development” was organized by MARD/ICD via ISG in the mornign of 6th April 2012 with participation of more than 100 contributors including leaders from MARD’s agencies, donors, developemnt partners, international organizations, NGOs, assocciations, enterprises and medias.

The 31st United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Regional Conference for the Asia-Pacific wrapped up on March 16 in Hanoi.

Addressing the closing ceremony, Hiroyuki Konuma, Chief Representative of FAO in Asia-Pacific highlighted the importance of the event for the future of agriculture and rural development in the region.

He said the conference provided FAO with much valuable information and experiences on a number of important policy issues as well as other issues related to agriculture and food security.

How to feed 9 billion people in 2050 is one of the biggest challenges of our era. Global food production must rise by at least 70 percent in 2050, with two time less natural resources. Without strong adaptation and mitigation measures climate change will reduce food crop yields 16 percent worldwide and by 28 percent in Africa over the next fifty years. It is likely that price and yield volatility will continue to rise as extreme weather continues, further hurting livelihoods and putting food security at risk. We can no longer look at food security, poverty and climate change separately. Climate-Smart Agriculture is a driver for green growth and the role of the private sector in driving the green, inclusive growth agenda needs to be emphasized.

 From 12 to 16 March 2012 in Hanoi, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) organizes the 31^st Regional Conference for ASIA and PACIFIC. The main topics of this FAO Conference are food security and poverty reduction in rural areas.

Participation in this conference will be the H.E Ministers of Agriculture from 44 FAO member countries, Representatives from international non-governmental organizations, intergovernmental organizations, United Nations organizations, social-civil organizations as well as private sector. This important event is organized by FAO one in every two years aiming at consideration and recommendations for significant issues in food and agriculture which critically influenced to the ASIA and PACIFIC region.

At the Year End Conference for deployment of 2011 and work-plan for 2012 for MARD, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan gave his direction: restructure for Agriculture is the central mission and shall be implemented in 2012.

MARD’s Minister Cao Duc Phat clearly pointed three groups of concerns shall be addressed: restructuring of investment, renovation of state enterprises, development of economic sectors and continuing the renovation of policies and institutions regarding Agriculture and Development (ARD).

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh, head of the National Steering Committee for the National Target Program of New Rural Development (NTP-NRD),  pressed at the National Kick Off Workshop for NTP-NRD that: the most critical arrow is the synchronous awareness of the entire political system for a committed implementation of this program. This is a long-term vision program so rushing is not worked. Rural infrastructure is not all for the program.

Prime Minister signed the Decision No70/2011/QĐ-TTg promulgating some mechanisms, policies in agricultural cooperation with African countries in the period of2012 – 2020.

This regulation is applied for bilateral cooperation activities in agricultural sector between the Government of Viet Nam (GoV) and Governments of African countries via:  (i) international protocol signed between the GoV and respective counterpart Government; (ii) Cooperation Agreement between the GoV and respective African counterpart countries; (iii) protocol signed between the GoV with one or more than one international donors; (iv) direct investment activities from Vietnamese enterprises to African countries in agricultural sector. All of these activities must be in line with the Foreign Investment Law of Vietnam and the Investment Law of the respective recipient countries.