A seminar to thoroughly grasp a project on the cooperative economy and building new-style cooperatives in the Mekong Delta was held in Can Tho city on July 15.

The event was co-organised by the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and the Southwestern Region Steering Committee (SRSC).

In his opening remark, MPI Deputy Minister Dang Huy Dong emphasised the significance of the Party and State’s policies in developing the collective economy.

The project aims to promote the sustainable development of the collective economic sector in the region, especially agricultural cooperatives, thus helping improve farmers’ economic, cultural and social lives, he added.

According to Dong, the Mekong Delta region has developed the individual economic model for years. However, the model has not yet proved its effectiveness and people’s living conditions are still low with unstable incomes.

Lack of cooperation, management and guidance are behind the failure of the model, said he.

The cooperative model is said to be suitable to deal with the problem, said Dong, adding that by joining cooperatives, members will be provided with low-cost input materials and technical support as well as be assisted in selling their products in the most effective way.

The initial step will see the formation of three cooperative models in rice cultivation, tra fish breeding and fruit growing, Dong said.

According to Deputy Head of the SRSC Duong Quoc Xuan, there are more than 1,300 cooperatives and 45,000 agricultural and seafood cooperative groups in 13 Mekong Delta localities, accounting for 14 percent of the country’s total number.

Agricultural cooperatives have made positive contributions to socio-economic development and poverty reduction in the region, however, there are still shortcomings that need to be addressed, he said.-VNA