The Steering Committee and Organising Board of the 2014 Mekong Delta Economic Cooperation Forum (MDEC) held a meeting in Soc Trang province on November 7 to review and issue the forum’s joint statement.

Running from November 5-7, the eighth MDEC focussed on restructuring agriculture and modernising rural areas in the delta.

A number of activities were held as part of the forum, such as Ok Om Bok, a moon worshipping ritual performed by the ethnic Khmer; and trade promotion workshops on agriculture and rural areas.

A 600-booth fair showcasing the delta’s key products, such as rice, seafood, and fruit, attracted over 350,000 local residents.

During the meeting, delegates agreed on regional and international cooperation programmes for 2015 and decided not to hold the MDEC next year, which will be eventful enough, since localities need to focus on preparing for the 12 th National Party’s Congress.

The MDEC Steering Committee will instead hold review conferences to improve the organisation of the forum in the following years.

According to the Deputy Head of the Steering Committee for the south-western region Nguyen Phong Quang, the committee will coordinate with ministries, sectors and localities in order to organise the Mekong Delta Green Tourism week in Can Tho city next May.

The Mekong Delta, comprising Ho Chi Minh City and 12 provinces, is the country’s largest rice granary, accounting for 27.2 percent of the country’s agricultural land.-VNA