HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has called for authorities to strengthen the development of co-operatives to aid the country’s integration efforts and contribute to socio-economic development.

He was speaking at a meeting in Hà Nội on Thursday with the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance (VCA).

Phúc said that a household-based economic model was not strong enough to compete in the current market .

The PM admitted that the State had not always supported agricultural co-operatives, adding that infrastructure for production in rural and mountainous areas was poor and failed to meet the demand for large-scale and hi-tech manufacturing.

The leader asked localities to refine their regulations to develop production chains.

The Government would continue to issue new directives relating to cooperatives, he said. Localities needed to consider the transfer of new technologies and crops, processing and consumption, build new-style cooperatives and value chains, focusing on agricultural cooperatives, he said.

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyễn Chí Dũng, who is also deputy head of the Steering Committee for Innovation and Collective Economy Development, said only 30 per cent of agricultural co-operatives nationwide were working effectively.

In order to deal with difficulties regarding workforce, manufacturing and consumption, he called for support from Party units and local authorities.

Deputy head of the Steering Committee for Innovation and Collective Economy Development and VCA Chairman Nguyễn Ngọc Bảo said more than 20,700 co-operatives were operating nationwide with 6.5 million members, up 200,000 from late 2017.

He said the VCA would launch eight economic development schemes and build 500 manufacturing models for co-operatives in tandem with value chains by 2020.

He also appealed for State support in terms of capital, consumption, planning, manufacturing and seedlings. — VNS