Having great expectations for “the 2021 - 2030 Strategy for Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development - vision to 2050", Dr. Dang Kim Son, Policy Expert, Institute Of Agriculture Market And Institution Research, Vietnam National University of Agriculture (AMI - VNUA), said, “the strategy is truly one whole joy because for the first time in Vietnam we have a strategy on agriculture, apparently the first industry to have a strategy in all economic sectors.”

Change mindsets, behaviors, and then outcomes

One thing is certain: Those who take the lead, take the risks, especially when we build this new strategy and orientation in a completely new world scenario.

The world after Covid-19 is a completely different story. It's the world of integration, competition, climate change and more. It will be more difficult when our country has its own mess to care for. Institutional reform, human rearrangement, organizational rearrangement, administrative renovation, digitization are all sensitive matters that touch upon the rights and responsibilities of each person. Not to mention the fact that the nation’s budget capital and the people's capital have exhausted.

However, I hope that with the tradition from past to present, the tradition of Covenant X and Directive 100, the agricultural sector will implement “the 2021 - 2030 Strategy for Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development - vision to 2050" to create new breakthroughs, open all doors, and lift up the entire economy.

My first hope in this strategy is to see the change in mindset, and from the change in mindset comes the change in behavior, and then: the outcome.

I can firmly say that Vietnam's agriculture today is no longer a story of one single ministry or industry, but related to all subjects revolving around the agricultural economy.

When we have defined agriculture as the country’s main advantage, the stature and related subjects are not only producers, traders, investors, processors, traders but also many other subjects, fields, and related industries: From input material supply, machinery and equipment provision, capital funding, science and technology and those in the output sector such as transport, commerce, retail, consumption, to other fields and industries such as transportation, tourism.

Another thing to add is that at the moment when Vietnam becomes a highly globalized agricultural economy we also witness wide connections with international communities.

In a certain aspect, most people on this S-shaped strip of land feel closely connected to agriculture, farmers, and countryside. So when it comes to changing mindsets, I wish that the change will occur to the majority of Vietnamese - changing mindsets from leaders of management agencies and localities to entrepreneurs and farmers.

Changing mindsets will lead to changes in behaviors, in how we conduct ourselves, in the way how all subjects orient their action, resulting in changes in results, in Vietnam's economy. That's what really matters. That’s what I look forward to the most.

Green, ecological agriculture and its three meanings

Also in the strategy, we have determined that Vietnam's agriculture will be green and ecological. Vietnam's agriculture will not compete by quantity and natural exploitation anymore, and instead aim to compete by producing less but economically, reducing the pressure on nature and protecting the environment. It will be agriculture of higher efficiency.

Those are matters that hold real meaning: green agriculture to develop and enter the good market; green agriculture to create unique advantages; green agriculture to show responsibility to ourselves, to the country and our future generations - green both in terms of environment and society.

Many people think that green, ecological, and sustainable agriculture is agriculture of the rich or wealthy countries out there, and wonder if it is a goal too far-fetched for Vietnam’s agriculture.

I think otherwise. In the context that the world seeks to create its own strength through science and technology, added value, cheap production costs, and improvement in management level, our country is choosing a different path, a very special advantage.

It can be seen that our nation’s leaders have recently made strong commitments to reducing carbon emissions and reducing the greenhouse effect. One should bear in mind that this is a problem that major countries and other powerhouses sometimes avoid and are cautious about because it greatly affects the system and organization of production, as well as applied technologies. But we, a newly developed country, still in the process of transformation, take the courage to stand up and commit to implementing.

Of course, there are many challenges, but I believe that mindset and action from everyone's determination will call for great opportunities. If this feat can be achieved, our agricultural products will have different standards, will be sold at different prices, and will be accepted in markets different from now. Green agriculture is very likely to open up a new prospect, a new direction of market development, and a completely new way to produce and organize production for  Vietnam.

The third meaning that I want to mention, is that green, ecological agriculture must be, first and foremost, “for us”.

Through Covid-19 it can be clearly seen that the country and people are always living within the risks of epidemics, natural disasters, and climate change. If we do not protect the environment and ecological balance, unable to defend ourselves from the risks, we - the people - will be the first to suffer.

Green, responsible agriculture will first protect us. It's actually us being responsible to ourselves. We will reduce water for irrigation. We will not degrade the land, pollute the environment, nor disrupt the biological balance anymore. Our production process, following the new strategy, will be the safest and cleanest. That is a meaning greater than all simple thoughts for so long, such as safety and hygiene or disease prevention.

Helping agriculture means helping ourselves and the country

In my opinion, our agriculture still has many challenges, facing from two sides. Our front is still fresh, still changing amid many hardships, while behind us is the old legacy and weaknesses that remain in jumble and take a long time to resolve. However, once we unshackle ourselves from constraints and overcome imminent storms, we will be able to spread our wings and soar into the sky.

We must overcome the current obstacles such as small and fragmented production, backward technical level of farmers; overcome the lack of capital, poor infrastructure, and high transportation costs; overcome scientific and technological management mechanism that is full of impediments, development of cooperative economy that lacks mechanism on policies, also activities to attract investment in agriculture that are insufficient. We should have dealt with those constraints and barriers a long time ago, but in reality, our struggles with them still remain.

Looking further ahead, developing agroproduction into an economy is the story of how other industries and processing must come back to serve agriculture; and how to make service industries not only care about banking, real estate, and stock market but also help the agricultural industry perform well in trading, grasp better market information, and provide ample funding for farmers.

As one would expect, to bring all other industries into coordination with the agricultural sector, aiming towards an economy with the core being advantages from the agricultural industry, is an arduous and difficult task. But I think there is no other way. We still have to do it, starting from a renewed mindset. It must come clear to us that helping agriculture is not just for agriculture alone: Helping agriculture means helping ourselves and the country.

Vietnam's strength lies in agriculture and its power will truly be expressed through agriculture. The agricultural strategy requires us to untie very specific issues in production and at the same time open the door for all other sectors to participate and cooperate. Only then can the transition from production industry to an official economy be possible.

Put farmers in the "heart" of the development process

It is obvious that farmers are still at the center of this strategy. They are still the main subject because their group is the largest in society. Rural residents account for approximately 65-70% of the population. In today's society, the largest number of laborers are also rural laborers.

It is to my belief that for farmers to escape poverty, get jobs, have a stable livelihood, and aim for a high income at least equal to people in urban areas, there is no nation rich enough to invest, subsidize, and create jobs for such a large number of workers and residents. Just like there is no business system strong enough to do so for such a large number of people. And no other international aid can offer projects and development programs for such a large population and geographical space.

Therefore, the new strategy must create conditions so that rural people can stand up on their own two feet. Of course, people must first accumulate internal resources for themselves, make contact with opportunities, resources, and markets across the country to develop themselves. From being small farmer families they will step up to become large households, then non-agricultural households, small enterprises, large enterprises.

To make this a reality, our strategy must empower farmers. Farmer is no longer the person who only know, talk, act, check or ask for benefits. Farmer must be the decision maker, the planner, the person who participates directly in the investment and management process, and the person who will become the owner of a business.

Let the farmer stand in the position of “holding the steering wheel, sitting on the operating chair”. Let them really take control. Then we will connect to help them gain access to resources, create conditions for them to have a market for labor, services, and other goods.

We will organize so that farmers have to stand in collective economic groups. That is because small households will not be able to develop without being in a cooperative economy, and small businesses cannot develop without being in associations. From these foundations farmers will develop further on their own.

Through analysis and research I have learned that all the tasks of empowering, organizing, equipping knowledge, facilitating market access for farmers are clearly shown in the strategy. The ultimate goal is to put farmers in the "heart" of the development process.

The countryside will be the place where changes take place

In the next few decades, rural society will change in a way never before seen in history.

The first is rural labor. Most rural residents will turn into urban citizens. Most agricultural workers will turn into non-agricultural workers. Rural workers will also age, workers in industrial zones will be discarded due to the automation of the 4.0 revolution.

The second is that rural resources and space will also experience huge changes. Most of the agricultural land will be converted from food production to fruit tree production, fishery production, and forestry production. A very large part of rural infrastructure will change such as the machinery and transport system for agriculture.

The proportion of land for industry, non-agriculture, especially urban areas will increase a lot compared to before. And from that the face of the countryside will change greatly. Our strategy must make the whole process of changes happen synchronously and really fall within the management ability and ownership role of farmers.

"Will rural areas continue to become the sustainable foundation, lung and defense space of the country as before? Will farmers still be the pioneering force in production, combat, or even the main driving force of development in the near future?"

I think everything is completely tied to what changes “the 2021 - 2030 Strategy for Sustainable Agricultural and Rural Development - vision to 2050" may bring forth - An orientation for development in which we are in control of the situation.

In that panorama, perhaps the core value lies in the factor of community. Only by preserving and developing community relations in the countryside can we establish a basic force as well as an ecosystem, aiming for comprehensive agricultural development.

Translated by Samuel Pham