Agricultural restructuring will focus on the two breakthroughs of scientific-technological application and re-organisation of production, according to Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat.

Appearing at a hearing held by the National Assembly’s Economic Committee on December 31, the minister reported that his ministry is implementing 12 projects to carry out restructuring in the fields of cultivation, animal husbandry, forestry, fishery, agro-forestry-seafood processing and irrigation.

Major solutions include reforming mechanisms and policies; restructuring public investment; developing research and the transfer of technologies; re-organising production activity; training labourers; and improving capacity and efficiency of state management.

According to the minister, restructuring efforts have contributed greatly to the agricultural sector’s performance in 2014, with a growth rate of 3.9 percent in production value, higher than the set target of 3.27 percent. The sector earned an estimated 30.86 billion USD from exports, up 11.2 percent from last year, while the ratio of added value in the sector’s production value increased from 64.7 percent in 2013 to 67.8 percent.

Regarding preparations for the sector’s international integration, particularly when the ASEAN Economic Community is formed in 2015, Phat said the ministry will focus on developing products in which the country has the upper hand.

Next year, the ministry will work with research institutes on developing for-export rice varieties and expanding the model of large-scale fields, towards building the country’s rice brand name.

The minister also answered questions on policies to develop fisheries and issues related to farmers’ income and credit for forestry./.