Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh: "When borrowing, we must turn the situation around, we cannot do petty things"

On the morning of October 24, the National Assembly discussed in groups the socio-economic situation, state budget, and public investment.

Delegate Nguyen Thi Quyen Thanh, Vice Chairwoman of Vinh Long Provincial People's Committee, said that the Mekong Delta has many potentials and competitive advantages. Resolution 13 of the Politburo has affirmed the consistent viewpoint on the determination to build this region into a key economic region of the country.

However, delegates from Vinh Long province suggested that the Government and the Prime Minister pay more attention and have clearer directions on sustainable development and response to subsidence and salinity in the region. Because currently, flooding and subsidence are happening seriously and unpredictably, affecting production and aquaculture, hindering development.

“If the sea level rises by 1 meter, about 40% of the Mekong Delta area will be flooded, so we need to respond soon to minimize damage,” said the Vice Chairman of Vinh Long Provincial People's Committee.

In response to the National Assembly delegates’ comments, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said that to solve the immediate problems of the Mekong Delta, the Prime Minister has decided to spend 4,000 billion VND for localities according to the initial proposal. Through actual surveys, the area has landslides, subsidence, drought and saltwater intrusion, especially in the provinces of Bac Lieu, Vinh Long, Ca Mau, etc.

However, not only extreme climate change, Vietnam also has the responsibility to join the world in preventing global warming, achieving the goal of net zero emissions by 2025. Especially, when Vietnam is one of the countries affected by climate change. Therefore, along with dealing with immediate problems, the Mekong Delta must mobilize resources to carry out large and effective projects.

According to the Prime Minister, in the context of limited resources, it is necessary to coordinate with countries and organizations to protect the flow of the Mekong River, because currently, the flow is changing rapidly and not in accordance with natural laws. This is an issue that requires mobilizing internal resources, both international cooperation to adapt and coping with changes in nature to implement large projects.

The Prime Minister also informed that he has promoted the development of 1 million hectares of clean rice and green agriculture to ensure food security and sustainable exports. Recently, when meeting the President of the Philippines, the Prime Minister discussed and raised the issue of signing a Government contract on rice, promoting effective and sustainable rice exports for farmers. The Prime Minister affirmed: "It is necessary to turn the situation around, change the state, and no longer produce fragmentedly and on a small scale. The situation of landslides, subsidence, drought, and salinity in the Mekong Delta is a big problem, so there must be a big project to prevent negative impacts on the region."

Regarding current international loans, according to the Prime Minister, there are two issues that need to be overcome: Procedures must be innovated, improved, simplified, transparent, fast and timely, limiting the length of time that causes waste of resources; overcoming the situation of borrowing capital to do small, ineffective projects, projects must focus on 4 issues: anti-subsidence, anti-landslide, anti-flooding, anti-drought.

Therefore, the Government hopes that the National Assembly, National Assembly deputies and localities will strengthen supervision of the implementation of large projects more effectively and thoroughly.

For further information, the Prime Minister said that currently, the development of transport infrastructure in the Mekong Delta region has a waterway plan to exploit the river sustainably, linked to ports. Localities need to allocate resources to implement the plan; while the Central Government focuses on implementing inter-regional and inter-provincial projects. The transport sector also needs to identify priorities to exploit infrastructure resources, facilitating the circulation of goods and logistics.

Regarding roads, the Mekong Delta is building two main traffic axes: the North-South axis from Ho Chi Minh City through Can Tho to Ca Mau, which is being resolutely completed “and must be completed” in this term. Next is the East-West axis from Soc Trang - Can Tho - Hau Giang to An Giang. On the basis of these two main axes, radial roads will be built to connect and additional investment will be made in aviation, railways, North-South high-speed railways, etc.

To implement these projects, ministries, branches and localities need to mobilize resources from both the central and local levels to resolutely implement them. The Prime Minister emphasized that in the context of limited resources, the central government will take care of policies and the state budget will be the main source of allocation, investment in development, and investment in regional and provincial linkages. However, localities must take care of site clearance and contribute to supporting project implementation, then there will be key and focal projects.

“If we keep thinking that we want to do everything, it will be unfinished. If we borrow money, we have to change the situation and change the state. We cannot do it in small ways. We need to determine the key points, and there must be coordination between the public and private sectors, the central government, localities and the State. We have the ability to do it, so we must be bold and determined in mobilizing resources, and complete each step to be effective,” the Prime Minister emphasized.