Vietnam celebrates World Food Day
Working together in co-operatives would enable farmers to buy agricultural utilities at more attractive prices, lower production expenditures and generate more profit from their work, according to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Bui Ba Bong.
Bong made the comments at an event held in the run up to the 32nd World Food Day, which falls on October 16.
The theme of this year's workshop was "Agricultural co-operatives: key to feeding the world." Talks highlighted the important role of agricultural co-operatives in combating poverty by ensuring food security and job creation.
According to Bong there are 19,500 co-operatives in Vietnam, of which 9,000 are in the agricultural sector with a membership of 6.7 million. The rate of farmer households participating in co-operatives is about 58 per cent.
Since 2002, co-operatives have contributed an average 6.38 per cent of the gross domestic product, while consuming only 0.58 per cent of fixed asset investment. They have created 300,000 jobs and helped develop infrastructure in rural areas.
Bong said that as Vietnam was restructuring the agriculture sector towards industrialised production, co-operatives had laid a good foundation for creating large-scale farming areas able to competitively produce high-quality products.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) representative in Vietnam, Yuriko Shoji, said that for FAO and its partners, agricultural co-operatives were natural allies in the fight against hunger and extreme poverty. Their importance has also been acknowledged through the United Nations' declaration of 2012 as the International Year of Co-operatives.
Shoji cited the evidence showing that strong co-operatives and producers were able to mitigate the negative effects of food shortages and other crises.
She added that co-operatives had also been able to overcome market and policy constraints by providing their members with access to a range of assets and services, while also making it possible for them to voice their concerns and interests – and to play a role in decision and policy making processes.
The FAO representative said that her organisation would support member governments in helping co-operatives to thrive through the development of adequate policies, legal frameworks, economic incentives and forums encouraging dialogue on policy making.
 |
| Farmers produce bricks in the Phu Thang Co-operative in the central province of Thanh Hoa. Working together in co-operatives will bring farmers lots of benefits. |
The theme of this year's workshop was "Agricultural co-operatives: key to feeding the world." Talks highlighted the important role of agricultural co-operatives in combating poverty by ensuring food security and job creation.
According to Bong there are 19,500 co-operatives in Vietnam, of which 9,000 are in the agricultural sector with a membership of 6.7 million. The rate of farmer households participating in co-operatives is about 58 per cent.
Since 2002, co-operatives have contributed an average 6.38 per cent of the gross domestic product, while consuming only 0.58 per cent of fixed asset investment. They have created 300,000 jobs and helped develop infrastructure in rural areas.
Bong said that as Vietnam was restructuring the agriculture sector towards industrialised production, co-operatives had laid a good foundation for creating large-scale farming areas able to competitively produce high-quality products.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) representative in Vietnam, Yuriko Shoji, said that for FAO and its partners, agricultural co-operatives were natural allies in the fight against hunger and extreme poverty. Their importance has also been acknowledged through the United Nations' declaration of 2012 as the International Year of Co-operatives.
Shoji cited the evidence showing that strong co-operatives and producers were able to mitigate the negative effects of food shortages and other crises.
She added that co-operatives had also been able to overcome market and policy constraints by providing their members with access to a range of assets and services, while also making it possible for them to voice their concerns and interests – and to play a role in decision and policy making processes.
The FAO representative said that her organisation would support member governments in helping co-operatives to thrive through the development of adequate policies, legal frameworks, economic incentives and forums encouraging dialogue on policy making.
Leave your comment on this story