Bắc Giang is focusing on overcoming difficulties and speeding up the implementation of the new rural construction programme in the area.

Dương Thanh Tùng, head of Bắc Giang's Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said Bắc Giang will innovate the content and improve the effectiveness of New Rural Construction Programme implementation in accordance with the level of development, culture, and specific conditions of each locality.

The province focuses resources on investments in communes and districts that have not met new rural standards and supports communes that have met new rural standards to continue to maintain, perfect, and improve the quality of criteria, ensuring sustainability. The province encourages the construction of enhanced new rural areas and sets a standard to create a green, clean, beautiful, safe rural environment and landscape, rich in traditional cultural identities, making the countryside "a place worth living".

New rural appearance in Safety Zone II, Hiệp Hòa district (Bắc Giang). – VNA/VNS Photo

Bắc Giang aims to diversify its new rural construction programme by the advantages, circumstances, and development opportunities of each locality in three directions.

Communes in peri-urban areas with a majority non-agricultural economy, with strongly developed services, trade, and infrastructure, are moving towards urbanisation. The programme aims to develop urban agriculture, gradually improve infrastructure, develop social services with quality approaching urban areas level, and form "eco-urban areas". The goal is to gradually bring urban development to rural areas.

Communes in large agricultural commodity production areas, producing key agricultural products of the province, will build specialised farming areas that meet technical standards, and have infrastructure and groups of processing and service industries. The plan for these communes is to support infrastructure connections with major markets, transit zones, and large logistics services, connecting with domestic and international markets. The goal is to develop rural residential areas dispersed by production areas that are harmoniously linked with urban areas to ensure the provision of socio-economic services.

As for traditional rural communes that continue to develop local speciality products and craft villages, the programme aims to help develop a service economy and rural tourism based on preserving and promoting local culture. The plan is to support the construction of essential infrastructure, especially for disadvantaged areas and ethnic minority areas. Aside from that, the programme includes developing concentrated residential areas of appropriate scale linked to urban areas in localities.

The total non-business capital of the Central budget to implement the National Target Program on building new rural areas for the period 2021-2025 in Bắc Giang province is over VND252 billion.

Up to now, building new rural areas has become a movement that spread strongly in the province. Bắc Giang province has many innovations and the income of its people is constantly improving and increasing.

It is expected that by the end of December 2023, the whole province will have 154 communes meeting new rural standards (accounting for 84.6 per cent), an increase of 30 communes compared to 2020; 56 communes meeting advanced new rural standards (30.7 per cent); 10 communes meeting new rural standards model; 332 villages meeting new rural standards model; The average number of criteria will be 18.1 criteria/commune.

Lục Nam district of Bắc Giang province is trying to complete the criteria for new rural districts, striving to complete the dossier to submit to competent authorities for recognition in 2023. Thus, it is expected that by the end of 2023, Bắc Giang province will have six out of nine districts meeting new rural standards.  – VNS