Decision No. 939/QD-TTg dated July 19, 2012 of the Prime Minister approving the overall plan on socio-economic development of the Mekong river delta till 2020

DECISION

APPROVING THE OVERALL PLAN ON SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE MEKONG RIVER DELTA TILL 2020

THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government, of December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to the Government s Decree No.92/2006/ND-CP of September 07, 2006, on the formulation, approval and management of socio-economic development overall plans, and the Government’s Decree No.04/2008/ND-CP of January 11, 2008, on amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No.92/2006/ND-CP, of September 07, 2006;

At the proposal of the Ministry of Planning and Investment,

DECIDES:

Article 1. To approve the Overall plan on socio-economic development of the Mekong River delta till 2020, with the following principal contents:

I. POSITION, ROLE

- With its potential and advantages in land and water surface, the Mekong River delta is the key area for food, aquatic product, flower and fruit production of whole country, importantly contributing to national food security and greatly contributing to agricultural and aquatic product export of whole country.

- It has an interlaced river and canal system, submerged forests and is a hub where the cultural traits of Kinh, Khmer, Cham ethnic groups and so on converge and interfere, thus creating favorable conditions for the development of eco-tourism and cultural tourism imbued with the region s particular features; and plays an important role for the ecological environment of Vietnam’s South and the Mekong River lower section.

- It is a geographical area having importance strategic position regarding national defense, security and external relations of whole country.

II. DEVELOPMENT VIEWPOINTS

1. The overall plan on socio-economic development of the Mekong River delta till 2020 must be suitable to the national socio­-economic development strategy, orientation of Vietnam s marine strategy and ensure unifying with planning of sectors, fields; and aim to build and develop the Mekong River delta into a motive force for boosting the national development.

2. To bring into play at highest the potential and advantages of localities in the region, especially advantages in agricultural production, aquaculture and marine economy; to push up economic restructuring and growth model renewal in direction of depth development; to sustainable develop the delta and coastal areas.

3. To develop a synchronous system of urban centers and residential areas and a system of technical and social infrastructure facilities in direction of being friendly with ecological environment and attached with rice fields, orchards, rivers, sea areas and islands.

4. To closely combine economic development with development of social affairs, education-training, health care and culture and realization of social progress and justice so as to gradually improve the quality of people s life; to push up the hunger eradication and poverty alleviation and reduce the social development gap among areas and among ethnic groups in the region.

5. To concentrate on training and developing human resources, especially high-quality ones, so as to meet market demands, combining human resource development with science and technology development and application.

6. To implement sustainable development, combining socio-economic development with economical use of natural resources and protection of the ecological environment; to adopt solutions to proactively prevent and respond to climate change and sea level rise; to closely combine socio-economic development with assurance of national defense and security and maintenance of political stability and social order and safety.

III. DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVES

1. Overall objectives:

To build and develop the Mekong River delta into a national key region for agricultural commodity production and aquaculture with high and sustainable economic growth speed; to strongly develop marine economy and development cultural and social sectors to reach the national average level; to build the region into a hub for proactive integration, trade exchange and economic cooperation with regional countries; and to firmly assure political security, national defense and social order and safety.

2. Specific targets:

a/ Regarding economy

- The economic growth rate will be 7.7% during 2011-2015 and 8.6% during 2016-2020. Per-capita GDP will reach VND 30.2 million (USD 1,550-1,600) by 2015, and VND 57.9 million (USD 2,750-2,850) by 2020.

- By 2015, the agriculture-forestry-fisheries proportion in the region s GDP will be 36.7%, while those of industries-construction will be 30.4% and services will be 32.9%. By 2020, these figures will be 30.5%, 35.6% and 33.9%. To assure national food security and maintain an export volume of about 6-7 million tons rice/year.

- Export turnover will annually increase over 12% on an average during 2011 -2015 and over 11.5% during 2016-2020. By 2012, the average export turnover per capita will reach USD 630 and over USD 1,000 by 2020; the technology renewal rate will be around 8-10%/year.

b/ Regarding culture and society

- The region s average population growth rate will be around 0.8%/year during 2011-2015 and 0.85%/year during 2016-2020. By 2015, the region s population will be around 18 million persons and 18.8 million persons by 2020. The region’s poor household rate will drop by 2- 2.5%/year on an average.

- To meet the standard of pre-school education universalizing for 5-year-old children by 2015. The rates of children in attending-school eligible age groups will be 99% for primary education, 85% for lower secondary education, and 60% for upper secondary education. By 2020, these rates will be 95-97% for lower secondary education and 65% for upper secondary education. To strive for the target that by 2020, the region s education, training and vocational training sector will reach the development targets of disciplines and educational levels higher than the national average.

- The malnutrition rate among under-5 children will be reduced to below 16% by 2015 and below 12% by 2020; the mortality rate among under 1-year infants will be reduced to 8.5% by 2015 and 7.5% by 2020.

- To create jobs for about 350,000-400,000 laborers/year. By 2020, the unemployment rate in urban areas will be 3.5-4%; the percentage of working time in rural areas will reach 88-90%; the percentage of trained laborers will be 35-40% by 2015 and about 50-55% by 2020.

The urbanization rate will be 28% by 2015 and 34.2% by 2020; to strive by 2020, for around 50-55% of communes in the region reaching the standards of new countryside; makeshift or thatched houses will no longer exist while people living on rivers and canals will be resettled.

c/ Regarding environmental protection

- By 2015, over 90% of urban population and 85% of rural population will have access to hygienic water. And by 2020, these figures will all be 100%.

- By 2015, over 85% of urban solid waste will be collected and treated up to the hygienic standards and over 95% by 2020. To remedy and basically treat the inundation in urban centers. By 2020, over 70% of urban sewage will be collected and treated.

- To increase the concentrated forest coverage to 8.5% by 2015 and over 9% by 2020. To protect marine and coastal ecosystems, national parks and nature reserves; to take the initiative in preventing and controlling storms, floods, natural disasters, climate change and sea level rise so as to mitigate their impacts.

d/ Regarding security and national defense

- To invest in completing the system of roads to border areas, border-guard stations, defending areas, residential areas and socio-economic infrastructure in association with the protection of border areas, islands and areas inhabited by Khmer people.

- To push up propaganda, education and mobilization work to people to strictly abide by the State s law so as to restrain, push back traffic accidents; to provide education about new cultured lifestyles and fight against superstition in inhabitant community.

IV. DEVELOPMENT ORIENTATIONS FOR SECTORS, FIELDS

1. Regarding agriculture, forestry and fishery:

To develop the Mekong River delta into a key agricultural development region, focusing on large-scale production of high-quality and competitive commodities, with rice and aquatic products as two national strategic exports. To form large-scale specializing production areas in combination of hi-tech application and new-countryside development; to further restructure agricultural production under the market orientation. To strive for an annual agricultural growth rate of 5.2% during 2011-2015 and 4.9% during 2016-2020.

- Agriculture: To determine rice is mainline, to further make scientific, technical and technological investment in the production of rice so as to increase its yield and quality ensuring for domestic consumption and export; to encourate the development of large-scale and specializing rice production areas (large model fields), especially in localities with rice production advantages such as An Giang, Kien Giang and Dong Thap provinces.

To plan and develop concentrated and intensive areas under fruit trees, focusing on the creation of new plant varieties of high economic value. To attach importance to development of cash crops and seasonal industrial plants, such as maize, cotton, soybean and sugarcane, in order to substitute for imported agricultural materials. To maintain a total rice-growing land area of 1.8-1.85 million ha by 2020.

To develop concentrated livestock and poultry husbandry in association with processing industry, to well assure epidemic prevention and control and food hygiene and safety.

- Fishery: To develop fishery into a spearhead economic sector with large-scale production, high competitiveness and great export turnover. To continue developing intensive and concentrated aquaculture while expanding aquaculture on the sea and in islands, freshwater and brackish water areas. To apply models of aquaculture applying new and modern technologies and techniques in order to increase productivity, quality and effectiveness and protect the ecological environment. By 2020, to strive for the total aquaculture land area will reach 550,000-600,000 ha.

To assure sustainable development of aquatic resources and protection of the ecological environment in the exploitation of aquatic resources; to invest in development of offshore fishing models and offshore and onshore logistics services.

- Forestry: To concentrate on consolidating and perfecting the special-use forest system; to form a protection forest system able to protect coastal and border areas and infrastructure facilities in flooded areas; to develop and improve effectiveness of plant production forests and scattered trees, and formulate the agriculture-forestry-fisheries combined model toward sustainable economic development in association with ecological environmental protection.

2. Regarding industry:

To boost industrial development as a motive force for regional economic development, focusing on the industry of processing agricultural, forestry and fishery products for export; power and energy industries, textile-garment and leather-footwear industries; and mechanical industries. To strive for an average industrial production value growth rate of 16%/ year during 2011-2015 and 16.5%/year during 2016-2020.

- To build a large-scale hi-tech processing industry in association with development of raw material zones; to form processing centers with modern and closed technologies and complete-set equipment for the production of deeply processed products; and concurrently, to encourage small- and medium-sized enterprises to invest in equipment to turn out products satisfying market demands; to concentrate on developing the comparative-advantage processing industries of rice, aquatic products, vegetables, fruits, coconut and meat and the production of animal feeds.

- To develop textile-garment and leather-footwear industries in association with local labor demands; to attach importance to invest in equipment procurement and skill improvement in order to directly produce exports and gradually reduce processing; to diversify models and products; to research and expand domestic and overseas markets.

- To make in-depth investment in existing facilities that produce mechanical products for agriculture; to research the building of a regional mechanical center in Can Tho city in order to facilitate for the technological level promotion and improvement of the regional localities; to attach importance to the development of ship building and repair mechanical industry in Can Tho city and Tra Vinh, Soc Trang and Ca Mau provinces.

Industrial parks will be planned and developed in a synchronous manner in association with the training of highly skilled human resources and laborers, to invest in social infrastructure facilities, such as houses, schools, medical establishments, and environmental protection establishments. To minimize to the lowest level the use agricultural land for development of industrial parks and complexes. To properly comply with regulations on establishment of new industrial parks. To attach importance to the development of industrial- cottage industry complexes and craft villages in localities.

3. Service, trade and tourism development:

- Services and trade:

To develop various trade organizational and operational modes satisfying people s demands. To form regional big commercial and exchange hubs in Can Tho, Phu Quoc and other big urban areas; to attach importance to develop trade in rural, deep-lying, remote, border and island areas, to serve the consuming demand of ethnic minority people in region; to complete the goods distribution networks from urban to rural areas.

To invest in building a synchronous trade infrastructure system, including trade-service centers, logistics centers and marketplaces system of appropriate scale; to attach importance to the construction of farm produce storage and preservation warehouse system, especially rice warehouse system ensuring efficient standard; to expand trade relations with neighboring areas, especially those in South eastern Vietnam and regional countries; to develop the border economy through boosting border trade exchange. To strive for an annual retail goods and consumption service turnover growth rate of 15.5% during 2011-2015 and over 14.5% during 2016-2020.

To support and encourage enterprises to operate effectively and form a number of specialized-goods trade groups having capacity to compete and condition to effectively cooperate with foreign distribution groups.

To strongly develop financial, banking, insurance, audit, accounting, technology transfer services and others in order to meet the demands of a socialist-oriented market economy; to encourage and support sectors of economy to invest in vehicles for road and waterway transportation and strongly invest in public transport.

- Tourism:

To develop tourism into an important industry based on the region s comparative advantages in geographical position and natural resources, including the submerged forest eco-system, the canal system and cultural identity of ethnic group festivals, in order to create unique ecological and cultural tourism products associated with the countryside and river and canal areas. To link closely among the regional localities and neighboring areas, especially Ho Chi Minh City, in order to develop inter-provincial and international tourist routes.

To form and develop 4 major tourist clusters, including Can Tho city and its vicinity, My Tho and its vicinity, Bay Nui-Rach Gia and its vicinity; and Nam Can and its vicinity.

4. Cultural and social sector development:

- Education and training

To develop education and training in the direction of standardizing, improve the quality of teachers and educational administrators, build a learning society, facilitate for every person to go to the school and unceasingly raise educational quality; to further renew teaching methods and teaching organization forms; to strengthen propagation and mobilization to more pupils going to the school, especially in areas with economically difficulties and ethnic minority areas; to remedy the school dropout rates at all educational grades. To further properly implement the program on solidification of schools and classrooms in the early childhood and general education system.

To attach importance to vocational training at the vocational collegial and secondary levels aiming to form a technical workforce up to national standards to meet the demand on laborers for industrial parks, economic zones, spearhead economic branches and for export; to strengthen short-term vocational training for rural laborers, ethnic minority people and laborers whose land is converted for other use purposes; to develop mobile vocational training and facilitate for disadvantaged people to receive vocational training and self-employ.

To further invest in upgrading the Can Tho University with physical foundations and lecturing staff attaining the level of advanced regional countries; to invest in the Nha Trang university s branch in Kien Giang; to expand tertiary and postgraduate education and develop a number of colleges and universities in the region in order to gradually adjust structure and the qualifications of the workforce.

- Public health care:

To well perform family planning and reproductive health care. To keep the natural population growth rate at 1.27%/year during 2011 -2015 and about 1% during 2016-2020.

To build and gradually modernize the regional health system to achieve the objectives of fairness and effectiveness and develop at the national average rate in order to meet the people s demands for protection, health care and living standard improvement. To consolidate and finalize the grassroots health network so that by 2015 all commune or ward health stations shall reach national standards.

To complete the construction of an intensive health center in Can Tho city. To invest in construction of regional general hospitals in Tien Giang and Kien Giang provinces, and upgrade provincial-level general hospitals to grade-I standards with 500-800 patient bed scale; to further consolidate hospitals specialized in obstetrics, gynecology, pediatrics, psychiatry, tuberculosis and traditional medicine in the regional provinces.

- Culture, physical training and sports:

To conserve and promote traditional cultural values deeply imbued with the national identities as a foundation for cultural exchange among ethnic communities in the region; to build and develop new cultural values, forming a civilized lifestyle and new cultured families in the region; to push up the building of a synchronous system of cultural and information institutions from the provincial to grassroots level.

To continue stepping up the movement "All the people do physical exercise following the example of Uncle Ho". To implement the program on development of physical training and sports in communes, wards and townships, especially in deep-lying, remote and ethnic minority areas, areas along the southwestern border and coastal areas. To continue investing in national-standard infrastructure facilities for sports training and competition; for the immediate future, to invest in construction of a regional physical training and sports center in Can Tho city.

- Poverty alleviation, employment and assurance of social security benefits:

To synchronously, comprehensively and effectively implement poverty alleviation programs and projects; to create opportunities for the poor to access with policies on supports in land, credit, vocational training, employment, industrial extension, agricultural-forestry-fishery extension and product sale; to build poverty alleviation models and concentrate supports facilitating for poor households to develop production and increase incomes.

To develop social security, protect and care for children; to mobilize all people to participate in "gratitude" activities and care for meritorious people of the nation; to pay attention to training, vocational training and employment for children of policy beneficiary families; to intensify charity and humanitarian activities to support the poor to integrate into the community. To exercise the rights of children to be cared for and protected; to create a healthy and safe environment for their comprehensive development; to prevent and push back risks of children trespassing.

5. Infrastructure development:

To synchronously develop the economic and social infrastructure system used as a motive force for the region s socio-economic development. To closely combine investment in transport infrastructure with irrigation, flood control and development of the network of urban centers, rural residential areas and residential clusters and lines in flooded areas.

- Transport development:

Roads: To form 5 corridor routes linking the Mekong River delta with South Eastern Vietnam and the whole country, including the coastal roads (national highways 50 and 60), national highway 1 A, Ho Chi Minh City-Can Tho city expressway, N2 and N1 roads; to complete the upgrading of the transversal axial roads to grade-Ill standards with 2-motor- lane scale; particularly, Nl road will reach grade-IV standards with 2-motor-lane scale; to complete the construction of the big bridges including Vam Cong, Cao Lanh, Co Chien and Nam Can and gradually upgrade weak bridges on national highways. To upgrade and build provincial and district roads as planned.

To strive for the target that by 2020 there will be 100% motor roads to all commune centers; 100% of district roads and at least 70% of commune roads will be asphalted or concreted; to eliminate all bamboo bridges; to further invest in a number of important and urgent works to serve the socio-economic development of the regional localities.

* Internal waterways: To invest in construction of the waterway transport routes of Ca Mau-Nam Can, Kien Luong-Ha Tien, Bac Lieu-Ca Mau and cargo-loading-unloading ports. To complete the project upgrading Cho Gao canal route and the project on developing the transport infrastructure in the Mekong River delta, which are funded with WB5 capital source. To further upgrade the existing waterway transport routes to ensure technical standards. To push up multi-modal transportation, focusing on fully tapping waterway transport advantages.

Seaways: To complete the investment in project on port entrance fairways on Hau river through Quan Chanh Bo canal; to study the upgrading of Big Gate river fairways. To study to invest in building seaports capable of receiving ships with tonnage of 30,000-50,000 DWT. To further upgrade the system of ports and fairways in a synchronous manner to meet the region s transport demands.

Airways: To complete soon the new Phu Quoc international airport (phase I) in order to bring into tapping and using which can accommodate B777 and B747 airplanes. To upgrade and expand the Ca Mau airport. To further invest in upgrading and raising the capacity and service quality of these airports to meet demands of the passenger growth.

Railways: To study investment in a 1,435-mm railway from Ho Chi Minh City to Can Tho city at an appropriate time.

-Electricity supply:

To develop gas-fired thermal power plants which use gas exploited from Cuu Long, Southern Con Son and Malay-Tho Chu deposit basins. To invest in construction of coal-fired thermal power plants in Duyen Hai-Tra Vinh, Long Phu-Soc Trang, Hau river-Hau Giang and Kien Luong power centers and Long An power plant. To build Phu Quoc thermal power plant and undersea cable line to Phu Quoc island to supply power for island province. To invest in a synchronous power distribution system to meet increasing power consumption demands of urban and rural inhabitants.

- Information and communications:

To build modern telecommunications infrastructure facilities of large throughput and high reliability and capable of integrating services on a transmission network. To build Can Tho city into a great postal and telecommunications service center of the region and the whole country. To build industrial parks of information technology (concentrated IT parks) and IT enterprise nurseries in Can Tho city and major urban centers in the region.

- Water supply and drainage and environmental sanitation:

Water supply: To gradually invest to upgrade existing and synchronously build new water supply systems to meet production and daily-life demands of urban centers. For rural and coastal areas and islands, to study water supply models and scales suitable to the characteristics of each sub-region (flooded areas, coastal areas and islands). To build a network of observation of surface water and groundwater quality in the whole region for contamination and salinity inspection and checking of water sources.

Drainage and environmental sanitation: To gradually invest in upgrading existing and synchronously building new sewage and storm water drainage systems in urban centers; to assure that sewage from households, industrial parks, hospitals and craft villages will be treated up to set prescribed standards before being discharged into the concentrated drainage system. To collect and treat garbage in a concentrated manner; to apply advanced technologies to treat garbage for recycling, and limit the use of landfills aiming to conserve land and assure environmental sanitation.

- Irrigation development:

To complete the multi-purpose irrigation and dike system to serve agricultural production, forestry, fisheries and rural development, to solve socio-economic issues, environment protection and sustainable development.

To continue improving flood drainage and water salinity control works and irrigation canals; to build water supply works for aquaculture in coastal areas and combined rice farming and aquaculture models in freshwater ecological zones. To study and build large-scale irrigation works in estuary areas, ensuring sufficient fresh water for production, water salinity control and environmental protection. To consolidate and upgrade the existing dikes, build new dikes, plant and protect shielding forests along the dikes for socio-economic development of in coastal localities.

6. Science and technology development:

To strongly and diversely develop the science and technology potential of the region, and build Can Tho city into a regional science and technology center. To establish the science and technology Institute, Biological Technology Institute, Fishery Research Institute and Technical and Technological Application Center in the Mekong River delta.

To develop the system of centers for application of science and technology advances in all provinces and cities in the region in order to intensify scientific and technological research and transfer. To prioritize and support the application of GAP standards (good agricultural/fishery practices) in agricultural production, forestry and fisheries; to prioritize and support the application of technical advances in mechanizing and reducing harvest and post-harvest losses; to support enterprises in agricultural and aquatic product process industry development.

7. Response to climate change and assurance of sustainable development:

- To assure sustainable socio-economic development to limit the unfavorable impacts of climate change. To plan and build a system of works to combat flood and sanitization, taking into account the impacts of climate change and sea level rise. To apply new technologies to the treatment of sewage and garbage in industrial parks; to modernize the daily-life sewage and storm water drainage systems in urban centers and transfer environment-friendly technologies served for production.

To survey, warn and propose measures to prevent and control natural disasters (embanking river banks, relocating people, planting trees to protect river banks, etc.) in areas highly vulnerable to landslide along rivers and canals. To incorporate the tasks of response to climate change and sustainable development in all activities involved in the development strategies of the sectors, fields and localities in the region, especially in economic development of the coastal localities.

- To protect the ecosystem of coastal protection forests, infrastructure facilities and inhabitant clusters in flood-hit areas and the southwestern border corridor. To protect national parks and nature reserves; to conserve standard models of the wetland ecosystem, bio-diversity and gene sources.

8. Combination of socio-economic development with defense and security:

To plan and build defense economic zones and closely combine the two strategic tasks of socio-economic development and defense and security consolidation, strengthen the defense potential through building the all-the-people defense and people s security disposition and be ready to defeat all plots and tricks of hostile forces.

To accelerate the upgrading and expansion of roads along the border; to invest in construction of border patrol roads in order to combine economic development with security and defense consolidation. To build works in fishing ports, especially those in islands, creating a synchronous system of infrastructure and logistics services from coastal areas to outermost islands to serve offshore fishing, storm sheltering and security and defense assurance.

V. ORIENTATIONS FOR ORGANIZATION OF DEVELOPMENT SPACES

1. Development of urban spaces:

- The system of urban centers: To develop the urban network in association with the development of industrial parks and trade and service centers; to create a network closely linked with the South eastern Vietnam, East Sea and West Sea and border areas through a convenient transport system.

The central urban area: including Can Tho city and the satellite cities of Cao Lanh, Long Xuyen and Vinh Long and Sa Dec town. To build Can Tho city into a regional industrial, service, commercial, science-technology, health, education, training, cultural and sport center, and Long Xuyen city into a central urban area of the Long Xuyen quadrangle.

The northeastern urban area: To develop My Tho city into a key urban center linked with the urban centers of Go Cong, Tan An, Tra Vinh, Ben Tre and Tan Thach. This is area linking the Mekong River delta with Ho Chi Minh City.

The southwestern urban area: To develop Ca Mau city into a key urban center linked with the urban centers of Rach Gia, Ha Tien, Bac Lieu, Soc Trang and Vi Thanh. To gradually build and develop Phu Quoc island into a high-quality ecological tourism center and major trade exchange hub of the delta, the whole country and the region.

- Development of rural residential areas:

To complete the program on residential clusters and lines and houses in frequently flooded areas and provide supports for abolition of thatched and makeshift houses in the region. To build rural residential areas under the planning and in conformity with the cultural traditions and production conditions of local people. Concurrently, to concentrate on investment in building essential infrastructure in order to ensure the people s stable life.

2. Development of economic zones

- The key economic zone (including Can Tho city and An Giang, Kien Giang and Ca Mau provinces) will be a major center for rice production, aquaculture, fishing and aquatic product processing, greatly contributing to the country s export of agricultural and aquatic products. To prioritize developing important services such as transfer of bio-technology, supply of plant seeds and animal breeds and technical services, processing and export of agricultural products for the whole region.

To develop power centers in Can Tho (O Mon), Ca Mau (the gas - power generation -nitrogenous fertilizer complex), Kien Giang (Kien Luong) and supply fuel gas from the southwestern gas fields, playing the role as the big energy center of the region.

To develop trade and service centers in Can Tho, Long Xuyen, Rach Gia and Ca Mau; and tourist sites in Phu Quoc island and Bay Nui area; to develop the border-gate economic zones in An Giang and Ha Tien; to invest in education, training, health, science and technology in these provinces, ensuring that they play the role as the socio-economic development motive force of the whole region.

- The zone in the north of Tien river (including the eastern part of Long An and Tien Giang provinces in the Ho Chi Minh City region):

To concentrate on developing planned industrial parks; to prioritize labor-intensive industries, support industries, and agricultural, forest and aquatic product processing industry; to push up goods exchange services, build a system of wholesale markets for fruits and rice, provide high-quality health and training services (in My Tho and Tan An); to gradually form a tourist site on Thoi Son islet; and to develop concentrated fruit tree zones in Tien Giang.

- Dong Thap Muoi zone (including the western districts of Long An and Tien Giang provinces and Dong Thap province):

To develop agricultural production, especially in non-flood seasons, study and restructure crops and production to improve result and income. To develop cross-border trade and border-gate economic zones in Long An and Dong Thap provinces.

To develop ecological-tourism combined with cultural and historical tourism such as Tram Chim and Go Thap tourist sites; to concentrate on building and upgrading arterial transport routes linking Dong Thap Muoi with the southern key economic region; to complete construction of flood-resistant residential clusters and lines for stabilizing the people s life; to develop small and medium-sized industrial establishments suitable to the regional conditions.

- The zone on the East Sea s coast (including the coastal districts of Tien Giang province and the coastal provinces from Ben Tre to Bac Lieu):

To concentrate on developing saltwater and brackish water aquaculture in coastal areas; to combine the rearing of shrimps and fishes with gardening and rearing crustaceans in tidal shores. To develop the production of specialty rice varieties of high quality and concentrated fruit tree zones in freshwater ecological zones. To develop agricultural and aquatic product processing and cottage industries; and to form some big aquatic product processing centers.

To attach importance to develop the infrastructure network in the coast (coastal roads and water supply systems), renovate the channels and fairways in Tien and Hau rivers; to develop Dinh An (Tra Vinh)  economic zone together with port services and shipbuilding industry. To study investment in synchronous infrastructure and necessary conditions for forming Ganh Hao marine economic zone when meeting sufficient conditions.

VI. LIST OF PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS PRIORITIZED FOR INVESTMENT STUDY

(See the attached Appendix)

VII. PLANNING IMPLEMENTATION SOLUTIONS

1. For the sectors prioritized for development

- Perfecting the suitable system of mechanisms and policies boosting the regional economic development; creating an environment for equal and transparent competition among enterprises; reforming administrative procedures.

- Synchronously developing the infrastructure system, especially the transport network in order to link the regional localities with neighboring localities; the irrigation network to serve rice production and aquaculture and large-scale fruit tree zones; and works for preventing and mitigating the impacts of the global climate change.

- Concentrating on improving the quality of education, training and vocational training, quickly developing high-level human resources to meet the society s demands. To push up the application of high technologies to agricultural production in order to increase the yield and quality of products and production value per hectare of cultivated land.

2. Investment capital solutions

Effectively mobilizing all resources, especially internal strengths, for investment in socio-economic development.

- Striving to increase state budget revenues, strengthening the combat against revenue loss and strictly handling tax evasions and trade frauds; ensuring correct, adequate and prompt collection of state budget revenues.

- Prioritizing the investment of state budget capital in regional strategic works and projects, which having no possibility of capital recovery, or for environmental pollution remedy, treatment, essential social infrastructure facilities and agricultural and rural development projects; concurrently, balancing the state budget in order to implement the social security policies, especially for the poor and policy beneficiary households; strengthening the control of expenditures, ensuring the effective use of budget funds for socio­-economic development in the region.

- Formulating and promulgating a list of programs and projects calling for investment till 2020; on that basic, pushing up promotion, investment support in order to attract investment capital from all economic sectors; using and making the best use of ODA sources for investing in the development of large-sized, synchronous and modern socio-economic infrastructure facilities.

Organizing auctions of land use rights to mobilize capital from domestic and foreign investors for development investment, effectively exploiting land resources; promulgating policies to promote investment and concurrently creating a favorable investment environment; developing the financial market; stepping up the socialization of investment in health, education, culture and sports.

- Expanding the investment forms of BOT, BT, BTO and PPP, facilitating for developing capital markets; developing forms of joint venture, investment partnership and contribution of assets as investment capital.

3. Solutions regarding mechanisms and policies

- Adopting policies to support rice production zones aiming to assure the national food security (grant of preferential credit for the purchase and storage of rice, stabilize rice prices, investment in infrastructure and warehouses in the direction of partnering with localities, creation of a motive force for development); supporting the development of clean and hi-tech agricultural products, especially export products, and building brands for agricultural commodities.

- Adopting policies to encourage developing the industry of agricultural, forest and fishery products preliminary processing and processing in deep-lying, remote and difficulty-hit areas. Adopting special policies on investment, finance and credit incentives for sub-regions with many rivers and canals, including application of appropriate investment rates and ratios to development projects funded with the state budget or credit loans originating from the state budget.

4. Solutions on Human resource

- Formulating and promulgating policies to promote and attract talents and highly qualified technicians to work permanently in the regional localities, and concurrently accelerating the training of local human resources suitable to the schedule of the regional socio-economic restructuring.

- Strengthening investment in education, training, health and culture to improve the people s intellectual standards, percentage of trained laborers, people s health and professional qualifications of economic managers and state administrative officials and civil servants. Expanding vocational training, employment promotion, assistance and recommendation in many appropriate forms; adopting policies on vocational training for laborers who shift to non- agricultural occupations and trades.

- Accelerating the planning and announcement of master plan on the network of schools at all levels (general education, vocational training, college and university); prioritizing to reserve land for non-public schools aiming to push up the socialization of education and training. Completing the planning on development of the health sector and the planning on training of health officers, focusing on development of hi-tech medical zones; increasing investment in specialized health centers and training human resources for the grassroots health network and preventive medicine operation.

5. Science and technology solutions

- Concentrating on research and application, creating a new and effective development step in the research and application of science and technology advances to production, business and state management. Encouraging inventive research derived from local and regional socio­ economic development requirement.

- Promoting internal strengths, combining with international cooperation and socialization of science and technology activities, setting up a science and technology market associated with eco-environmental protection and sustainable development.

6. Solutions on administrative reform

- To continue raising the effectiveness of administrative reforms toward publicity and transparency, and concurrently raising the quality of the contingent of cadres and civil servants aiming to create a favorable environment for attracting investment and well settling administrative procedures.

Promptly and fully formulating and promulgating regulations, mechanisms and policies in order to promote democracy, innovation and creativity and facilitate for good operation of the entire administration system, thus meeting development requirements.

- Raising the effectiveness of management activities of local administrations at all levels; clearly defining the authorities and responsibilities of different agencies to overcome overlapping functions and tasks; and concurrently strengthening the combat against red tape, corruption and wastefulness in the performance of task of the state agencies.

7. Solutions on cooperation and market development

- Expanding cooperation on the development of agriculture, training, health, tourism, scientific research, technological transfer and labor supply between the Mekong River delta and south eastern Vietnam, especially Ho Chi Minh City, in order to bring into full and effective play the potential of the region.

- Strengthening cooperation among the regional localities on investment promotion, building of material zones and processing industry, expanding market consuming products; sharing the regional infrastructure for industrial production, treatment of solid waste, water supply, and wholesale markets; combining tourism propagation and promotion, forming tours; exploiting, using and protecting water resources in sustainability and protecting the environment.

- Strengthening cooperation on the development of cross-border trade with Cambodia, developing border-gate economic zones, building transport and power supply networks for Vietnamese and Cambodian localities. Stepping up cooperation with the countries in the Mekong River lower basin in the exploitation and use of Mekong River water sources, especially for the purposes of agricultural development, fishing and aquaculture and mitigation of flood impacts.

Article 2.Organization and supervision of the planning implementation

1. After being approved by the Prime Minister, the overall plan on socio-economical development of Mekong river delta  shall serve as a basis for the formulation, submission for approval and implementation of sector, branch master plans in the region, and socio-economic development overall plans of the regional localities.

2. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with related ministries and sectors and regional localities in:

- Announcing and publicizing the master plan, organizing activities of investment promotion, propaganda and advertisement aiming to attract domestic and foreign investors and all economic sectors to take part in implementation of the master plan.

- Sponsoring in monitoring, urging, supervising and inspecting the implementation of the regional master plan and master plans of ministries, sectors and regional localities; supervising the implementation of regional-scale-nature key programs and investment projects.

- Studying and proposing a mechanism for coordination and partnership policies  and coordination among  localities in region and with other regions. Sponsoring and coordinating with relevant ministries, sectors to call investment in regional key projects.

3. Relevant ministries and sectors are responsible for:

Relevant ministries and sectors shall formulate new, adjust and submit for approval their master plans on sectors, fields, major products of the region suitable to the development objectives, tasks and orientations approved in Article 1 of this Decision.

- Study, formulate and submit to competent state agencies for promulgation a number of special mechanisms and policies specified in Clause 5, Article 1 of this Decision aiming to successfully achieving the objectives and tasks set forth in the master plan.

- Coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment in developing and supervising the implementation of the master plan, supervising the implementation of regional-scale-nature key programs and investment projects in the priority order under their management, aiming to boosting the socio-economic development of the region.

The specific tasks for ministries and sectors include as follows:

a/ The Ministry of Transport shall:

- Direct the building and completion of important transport works in the region, such as Quan Chanh Bo canal fairways, Trung Luong - My Thuan - Can Tho expressway, new Phu Quoc international airport, upgrading Cho Gao canal, southern coastal roads, and Cao Lanh, Vam Cong, Nam Can and Co Chien bridges.

- Study investment in building a seaport capable of accommodating ships of 30,000-50,000 DWT.

- Propose a mechanism to raise capital for large-sized transport development projects in the region.

b/ The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall:

- Complete the formulation and organize the implementation of planning on irrigation, and key agricultural and aquatic products in the region.

- Propose mechanisms and policies and provide supports for the regional localities in building hi-tech agricultural zones.

c/ The Ministry of Education and Training shall:

- Study and propose mechanisms and policies to promote partnership between training establishments and enterprises employing trained human resources in the region; facilitate for the Can Tho University and some other universities to modernize their physical foundations and develop their lecturing staffs and training programs to reach the level of the advanced regional countries.

- Coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, Can Tho city and relevant agencies in building Can Tho city into a regional center for training high-quality human resources.

d/ The Ministry of Industry and Trade shall:

- Assure the building of power centers and power distribution networks in the region according to set schedules and master plans.

- Assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with relevant localities in, building a network of regional wholesale markets and trade centers.

dd/ The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with relevant localities in, responding to climate change and sea level rise; protecting and rationally exploiting water sources; protecting national parks and nature reserves, and conserving bio-diversity.

f/ The Ministry of Construction shall assume the prime responsibility for making and adjusting general master plans in association with the planning, inspection and supervision of the construction of regional-scale hazardous waste treatment zones, cemeteries and water supply systems; coordinate with the regional localities in building drainage and sewage treatment systems, gradually remedying inundation in urban centers.

4. The provincial-level People s Committees in the Mekong River delta shall:

- Take the initiative in reviewing, adjusting, supplementing and submitting to competent authorities for approval their adjusted overall plans on socio-economic development till 2020 in conformity with the objectives and tasks approved in this Decision.

- To coordinate with ministries and sectors in activities of investment promotion, propagation and advertisement, thereby attracting domestic and foreign investors and all economic sectors to take part in implementing the master plan.

- To supervise and inspect the implementation of development investment projects in their localities according to their assigned functions, and report to the Prime Minister.

Article 3.This Decision takes effect on the date of its signing

Article 4.Chairpersons of provincial-level People s Committees in the region, ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies and government-attached agencies shall implement this Decision.

ANNEX

LIST OF PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS PRIORITIZED FOR INVESTMENT STUDY IN THE MEKONG RIVER DELTA TILL 2020
(Promulgated together with the Decision No. 939/QD-TTg of July 19, 2012, of Prime Minister)