HÀ NỘI — The southern province of Hậu Giang is building a project on strengthening competitiveness through promoting agribusiness in the period 2021-26.

The project is being finalised with consultancy support from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The project is designed to have capital investment of VNĐ1.6 trillion (US$68.8 million), of which VNĐ780 billion is expected from ADB, VNĐ46 billion is non-refundable aid and the remainder is the province’s counterpart capital.

It has four parts including innovation and technology transfer; infrastructure construction and equipment; supporting information technology development, organisation and coordination of value chains and credit support; and project management and backup.

In the plan, the loan from ADB is expected to build infrastructure and equipment serving the project and developing the growing area of vegetables, mushrooms, medical mushrooms and orchards in seven districts and townships of the province. It aims to have at least 20 per cent of safe vegetable and fruit qualified for VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards and have two or three brand names of typical agricultural products by 2025.

Speaking at the meeting between local leaders and ADB representatives held in the province on Monday, Deputy Chairman of Hậu Giang People’s Committee Nguyễn Văn Tuấn said the project was very important, contributing to building a stable growing area of vegetables and fruits and developing rural areas in the future.

“The province will conduct this project and pay attention to its efficiency,” Tuấn said.

Nguyễn Minh Cường, principal country economist at ADB, noted the province’s ideas. He said ADB wanted the project to be implemented at the same time as the provincial People’s Council’s medium investment plan in the period 2021-25.

At the meeting, Tuấn also proposed ADB to support Hậu Giang in upgrading infrastructure systems for water supply, waste water drainage, preventing climate change, electricity, healthcare, transport and agriculture and rural development. — VNS