HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has launched a promotional writing contest about new rural area development and agricultural restructuring during the 2017-2020 period.

The contest, an initiative by the MARD, in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Communications and the Việt Nam Journalists’ Association, will begin this year, with awards to be gifted every year until it concludes in 2020.

Speaking at the launch ceremony held on Thursday, MARD minister Nguyễn Xuân Cường said the contest is aimed at increasing awareness of the press, creating a consensus and ensuring a social response to the new rural development programme and restructuring work of the agriculture sector.

The contest, according to Cường, will also help spread information on the Party and State’s policies and laws on new rural development, update the works of agricultural restructuring simultaneously, and recognise and encourage journalists, writers and individuals to actively participate and contribute to the promotion of the rural area development programme in association with agricultural restructuring.

Entries can be in four media disciplines -- video, audio, print and online papers. They should be news, inspective of whether they are reports, interviews, commentaries or feature stories, and should be qualified and accurately meet demands in terms of writing skill and design.

The awards will include one first prize worth some VNĐ15 million and two second prizes worth VNĐ7 million each.

Deputy Prime Minister Vương Đình Huệ, who also attended the ceremony on Thursday, emphasised that the construction programme of new rural areas in association with agricultural restructuring was a long-term policy of the Party and the State.

“We have gone five years and achieved certain results. But there are heavy responsibilities ahead requiring cooperation of both the political system and the participation of the media,” Huệ said.

The deputy PM also stressed on the meaningfulness of the contest and important role of the media, saying channel of communication and dialogue between local authorities and the people in the implementation of the programme was essential. — VNS