Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung attended a ceremony to honour the VietnamRubber Group (VRG) with the Gold Star Order for its contributions tothe industry in Ho Chi Minh City on April 8.
Heurged the group to further invest in the rubber processing industry andscience and technology, and develop infrastructure projects.
Dung said the VRG has developed 300,000ha of rubber plantations inVietnam and more than 200,000 ha overseas, compared to just 40,000haafter the war.
The group’s production has continuedto increase despite the global economic downturn with an average annualrise of 6 percent in area and 10 percent in productivity in 2001- 2010.
Export turnover has increased by more than 30 percent per year and hit nearly 3 billion USD last year.
The PM asked the industry to strive to expand the country’s rubberarea to 1 million ha by 2015 of which the group would account for nearlyhalf.
He also urged the VRG to improve the quality of Vietnamese rubber, promote exports and expand its markets.
VRG general director Tran Ngoc Thuan said they will focus onrestructuring to improve effectiveness and develop their rubberplantation scale to 500,000ha to provide jobs for 175,000 workers.-VNA