By Jan. 14, delegates to the 11th National Party Congress had heard 27 presentations touching on a wide range of issues.

At the afternoon session on the day, chaired by Politburo member, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, they listened to ways and means to develop a contingent of professionals to serve the country’s knowledge-based economy.

In his paper, Chau Van Minh, Secretary of the Party Committe of the Vietnam Science and Technology Academy, pointed out that a knowledge-based economy needed a large contingent of high-quality professionals.

He also mentioned the adoption of an appropriate mechanism to enable professionals to bring into full play their capacity to contribute to the nation’s growth.

Minh proposed renovating existing mechanisms and policies designed for scientific and technological development, bettering the legal system to meet socio-economic development requirements, encouraging businesses to revamp technologies and sharpening their competitiveness to create an equal, competitive environment and fight off monopoly.

He also suggested the creation of a connectivity linking research, training, production and business while working out an effective mechanism to support products under research and develop technologies into commodity products to serve the need of socio-economic development.

Also, the President of the Academy, Minh called on the State to increase investment in scientific studies and technological development as well as in deploying the application of cutting-edge technologies to reach the world’s average standard by 2020.

He referred to the requirement of improving the quality of basic research in natural and social sciences and reforming management and financial mechanisms in the scientific and technological sector to create a driving force for intellectuals to maximise their creative capacity.

“Education at all levels must be modernised toward a long-term goal of producing high-quality human resources,” Minh said.

Party Central Committee member Hoang Tuan Anh, who is Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, touched upon the building of an advanced Vietnamese culture deeply imprinted with national identity, describing the task as an important inner strength for sustainable development.

He affirmed that over the past 81 years of national construction and defence, the Party has been seriously aware of the importance of culture, its role and strength in sustainable development.

Mentioning certain effects stemming from the market mechanism and international integration on the nation’s traditional culture, the minister raised the need to take solutions to fix weaknesses in cultural affairs while promoting achievements gained in the field.

He emphasised the importance of regarding human development as the centrality of the national development strategy, paying due attention to literature and artistry, preserving and promoting cultural heritages of the 54 ethnic minority groups and developing the cultural industry.

“The decisive solution is to enhance the Party’s leading capacity and the State management over all spheres of culture,” Anh said.

Also at the session, Nguyen Duc Kien, Deputy Secretary of the Soc Trang provincial Party Committee, delivered a presentation about, “Well implementing the Party’s ethnic and religious policies to develop the economy and raise the spiritual and material life of the Khmer people”./.