The Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long has devised a number of measures for the development of a comprehensive irrigation system, according to the provincial Department of Agricultural and Rural Development.

This year alone, it has set aside some 254 billion VND (11.87 million USD) in the construction of and upgrades to 234 irrigation projects across the province with priority given to building flood-proof embankments in Bac Mang Thit district and expanding irrigation canals.

Other focuses have been on projects to upgrade irrigation systems serving large-scale fields in Tam Binh district, embankments surrounding orchards and aquaculture farms in Quoi Thien commune in Vung Liem district, Hoa Ninh and Binh Hoa Phuoc communes in Long Ho district and embankments protecting Binh Tan district’s crops to the north of National Road 1A.

So far this year, 156 irrigation works worth a total of 64.3 billion VND (more than 3 million USD) have been completed, supplying water to 91 percent of the province’s agricultural land.

As many as 15 out of 22 communes have met the irrigation criteria in the new rural area building programme.

During the rest of the year, the sector targets to accelerate the implementation and operation of sewage and dam systems in the modern rural Thanh Binh commune and irrigation works for large-scale fields in Tan An Luong commune, Vung Liem district, among others, to meet the requirements of local agricultural production restructuring.

Additionally, under the local irrigation system restructuring plan from 2014-2020, nearly nine trillion VND (420.56 million USD) has been allocated for developing rural areas.

The locality has also mobilised different resources to facilitate the construction, operation and management of local irrigation systems.-VNA