Restructuring the agriculture sector will enhance food security and increase exports of farm products, helping the country reduce poverty and eliminate hunger and contributing to rural development.

The view was shared by agricultural experts and sponsors at a conference held by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Japanese Embassy in Vietnam, in Hanoi on December 4.

The event, themed “Restructuring agricultural sector: Sustainable development and added value,” drew representatives from the Food and Agriculture Organisation, the Japan International Cooperation Agency and the International Fund for Agricultural Development, together international donors.

According to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Cao Duc Phat, Vietnam considers the quality and sustainability of agricultural growth an important issue in the coming time.

The ministry has established a project to restructure the sector that will increase added value and ensure sustainable development.

The three primary outcomes will include developing rural areas to raise a farmer household’s income by 2.5 times before 2020, reducing the rate of poverty by 2 percent every year, and increasing the number of modernity-oriented rural communes by 20 percent in 2015 and 50 percent in 2020.

Phat said he hopes the event will facilitate experience sharing with the sponsors and international organisations, and reach a consensus on viewpoints, approach methods, targets and orientations for the sector’s restructuring.

At the conference, participants said they highly valued Vietnam ’s agricultural achievements in the last 25 years. It has transformed from a country lacking food to the world’s leading rice exporter, they added.

For effective restructuring, Vietnam needs to reprioritise public investment, improve the effectiveness of public investment use and management, reform the sector’s institution and innovate state-owned enterprises.-VNA