The Mekong Delta city of Can Tho will summon up all its strength to expand the production of rice, aquatic products and textiles, which are the locality’s three key foreign currency earners.

The city has set the goal of exporting 1 million tonnes of rice this year for a revenue of 412 million USD, with 22 percent of the rice shipped to choosy markets such as Japan, the EU and North America.
To realise the target, the locality plans to expand its rice field area to 230,000 ha this year, producing about 1.4 million tonnes of products, while signing contracts with neighbouring localities to purchase 550,000 tonnes of rice materials. It will also invest in equipments for husking, polishing and packing rice in line with international standards.

Regarding the production of aquatic products, Can Tho will shift to products with high added value via encouraging the application of advanced technologies in processing and preserving products. It hopes to export 160,000 tonnes of aquatic products in 2015, earning 485 million USD.

Meanwhile, the city will upgrade garment making production factories and train 3,000 more workers for the apparel industry in order to improve product quality and raise output.

Can Tho is striving to rake in between 1.45-1.6 billion USD from exports in 2015, up 100-250 million USD against that of 2014, to which the three staples are to contribute around 1 billion USD, said Bui Ngoc Vy, Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Planning and Investment.

Last year, the city’s export turnover hit 1.35 billion USD, with the largest contributions coming from rice, aquatic products, textile and processed food.-VNA