Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang on June 12 accepted his share of the responsibility for weaknesses in managing rice exports and vowed to work closely with relevant ministries and sectors to make improvements.

Weaknesses in rice management

During the question time at the current National Assembly, Mr Hoang said that by May 31, 2009 Vietnam had exported nearly 3 million tonnes of rice out of a total of 4.1 million tonnes in contracts that businesses signed with their importers.

If more contracts are signed, the target of exporting 4-4.5 million tonnes will be met this year, said Mr Hoang.

He attributed the record export volume to the effort made by farmers, especially those in the Mekong River Delta, and rice export businesses, including the northern and southern cooking corporations, as well as the Vietnam Food Association’s management role.

Mr Hoang affirmed that the volume of exported rice is based on the country’s agricultural production in order to ensure national food security and avoid having a negative impact on the consumer price index.

However, he acknowledged that the Vietnam Food Association dropped the ball in terms of rice export management, resulting in a large volume of rice for export remaining in stock.

He said that on June 5, 2009, the Prime Minister acknowledged the association’s key role in rice management but asked the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and relevant ministries to increase their State management role in the exportation of rice.

Poor quality imported products

Deputy Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen from Phu Tho province asked Minister Hoang about measures his ministry will take to control the import of poor quality products into Vietnam, citing the fact that many imported toys for children containing hazardous substances are flooding the domestic market.
Minister Hoang acknowledged his ministry’s weaknesses in market management, especially a lack of market law enforcement in border provinces. He said the ministry will work with relevant agencies to tighten control of shops selling imported toys and lay down technical specifications for these products before they are imported into Vietnam.

Deputy Nguyen Van Ba from Khanh Hoa province raised a question about the MoIT’s responsibility to address fraudulence petrol transactions.

In reply, Minister Hoang said that his ministry had instructed the Market Management Department and grassroots-level market management agencies to keep a close watch on the purchase and sale of petrol and oil at petrol stations. They later uncovered and dealt with law-breaking activities, including tampering with meters and listing prices improperly.

He affirmed that his ministry and market management agencies will introduce tougher measures against such law-breaking activities.

Power supply to disadvantaged areas

Deputy Nguyen Huu Nhi from Nghe An province pointed out that 27 communes in his province, mostly in remote areas which are of great importance in terms of national defence and security, are not yet on the national power grid.

“What will the MoIT do to help these disadvantaged communes in Nghe An and across the country to benefit from power projects?” said the deputy.
Minister Hoang reiterated the Party and State’s policy of supplying power to every Vietnamese citizen, no matter where they live in the country.

According to the minister, 97.74 percent of the communes have so far been connected to the national power grid, surpassing the 95 percent target set for 2010. The remaining number of inaccessible communes are mostly located in remote areas and the MoIT will work closely with other ministries and agencies to ensure these areas will be supplied with power as soon as possible.

If power projects are not feasible in these communes due to difficult topography, the MoIT will instruct the Electricity of Vietnam Group (EVN) to use solar and wind energy or other sources of renewable energy to generate power there, said Mr Hoang.

Deputy Nguyen Van Nhuong from Quang Binh province and deputy Nguyen Van Son from Tuyen Quang province asked Mr Hoang about his ministry’s plans to relocate local people living near 220KV transmission lines.

Minister Hoang said that the MoIT will work out solutions pending a study into the effects of the transmission lines on human health.

VietNamNet/VOV