Support from industry promotion programmes have helped to significantly change the image of Hoa Binh province’s rural industry as the number of industrial production facilities has increased, production gradually mechanised and a large number of laborers found jobs with stable incomes, the Ministry of Industry and Trade's Vietnam Economic News reported.

Despite the socioeconomic difficulties in the northwestern mountainous province over recent years, the local rural industry has witnessed significant changes. Since 2008, the number of industrial production and handicraft facilities has increased to about 500. The provincial traditional craft villages have also developed rapidly with their products having strengthened positions in the market.

According to the provincial Department of Industry and Trade, the strong development of the provincial rural industry in recent years is a result of industry promotion programmes.

In the 2008-2012 period, with a funding of more than 4.043 billion VND (190,000 USD), the Hoa Binh Industry Promotion and Development Consultancy Centre carried out many industry promotion projects. It supported Hong Thang Company in Mai Chau district to build a bamboo processing plant, set up industry promotion consultancy centres and organised vocational training courses for 3,470 local workers.

In addition, the centre helped representatives of the industrial production facilities and enterprises visit and learn experience from adjacent provinces, adopt new occupations and facilitate them to broaden production premises as well as map out development plans for each group of communes, focusing on potential occupations.

Notably, Hoa Binh industry promotion created attractiveness as reciprocal capital sources of the beneficiaries are much higher than the support funding, at 11.462 billion VND (538,700 USD).

In 2013, it continued to help boost the local industrial and handicraft production. With more than 2 billion VND (94,000 USD) from the national and local funding, the Hoa Binh Industry Promotion and Development Consultancy Centre organised vocational training courses for 920 locals and a trade fair for industrial, handicraft and consumer products.

The industry promotion programmes and projects encouraged the production facilities to expand investment, production and improve the competitiveness of their products in the market. Especially, through the vocational training programmes, the laborers have been offered stable jobs.

However, according to the department, the provincial industry promotion activities over the past years have not promoted full efficiency and created broad influence as expected. The approach to industry promotion policies of the provincial industrial production facilities still meets with many difficulties. The industry promotion staff still have limitations in terms of professional skills and coordination between the local authorities at different levels remained loose.

Being aware that industry promotion is one of the important solutions to create changes for the rural industry, the department will continue to facilitate industry promotion programmes through favourable mechanisms.

Accordingly, the province will boost support for local enterprises regarding vocational training, application of cleaner production, energy efficiency in production, supports for advertisement campaigns of the facilities and improvement of the staff’s professionalism.

The provincial Department of Industry and Trade will also coordinate closely with Economic and Infrastructure Departments of Hoa Binh city and districts to survey the demand of enterprises and production facilities for corresponding support solutions.

It will also diversify industry promotion activities in the society to take advantage of all resources for the development of industrial – handicraft occupations and craft villages.-VNA