Decision No. 25/2008/QD-TTg On issuing certain mechanisms and policies to support economic and social development for the Central Highlands provinces until 2010

DECISION OF THE PRIME MINISTER

On issuing certain mechanisms and policies to support economic and social development

for the Central Highlands provinces until 2010

PRIME MINISTER

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

Considering the proposal of the Minister of Planning and Investment at the report No. 8409/TTr-BKH dated November 15, 2007,

DECISION:

Article 1. Issuing certain mechanisms and policies to support economic and social development for the Central Highlands provinces until 2010 (including the provinces of Gia Lai, Kon Tum, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Lam Dong) with the main contents as follows:

1. Certain main objectives and targets until 2010:

- The annual average growth rate of GDP of the Region reaching 12 - 13%;

- Reducing the poverty rate by 3 - 4% annually, implementing sustainable poverty reduction, preventing relapse into poverty;

- Creating new jobs for 120,000 to 140,000 workers per year;

- The proportion of trained labor force from 25 to 30%;

- Total forest area reaching approximately 3.54 million hectares (protective forests 950,000 hectares), increasing forest coverage to 65%;

- The percentage of people using clean water in cities 95%; in rural areas 80%.

2. Key tasks for developing major industries and sectors:

a) Industry

Focus on investing in key industries such as: processing agricultural and forestry products, hydropower, construction materials production, and mining.

- Processing industry of agricultural and forestry products:

Developing the processing industry of agricultural and forestry products is the main task of each locality in the Region from now until 2010. The goal is to build this industry into a leading industry of the Region.

Building industrial processing facilities mainly relies on existing raw materials, local production capacity, and must be based on approved sectoral planning and primary product planning of the Region. Invest in advanced equipment and modern technology to ensure high-quality products capable of competing in the market.

Industrial development should diversify in scale and type of production, combining medium and small scales, establishing centralized processing facilities in large raw material regions, encouraging the development of household-level processing or preliminary processing for simple products produced far from factories; encouraging domestic and foreign economic sectors to participate in industrial development.

Prioritize the development of some processing industries that can be concentrated in large-scale investments such as coffee, rubber, cashew nuts, cotton, tea, meat, milk, etc. Strive to have at least 50% of the coffee production in the region processed into high-quality exportable goods with brands by 2010. Upgrade equipment and synchronize production lines for existing rubber factories and build new factories to achieve a product structure: latex accounting for about 45%, white latex 20%, technical rubber about 35-40%; part of which will be produced into high-quality products like tires, car belts, conveyor belts, etc., to replace imports. Process cotton and cashew nuts mainly by selecting appropriate production lines and diversifying products to enhance production efficiency. Process tea mainly maintaining the current factory capacity, only upgrading equipment and technology to ensure over 70% of tea production meets export standards.

Reorganize existing sugar production facilities while maintaining traditional handcrafted sugar production to meet local consumption needs. Process corn and cassava starch to serve food, livestock feeding, and export needs suitable to the raw material regions; limit cassava cultivation to protect the environment and prevent soil erosion.

Process forestry products, mainly wood, including utilizing rubber trees cleared annually. Main investment directions include producing artificial boards, wood chips, and refined wooden products to meet domestic and export demands.

- Regarding hydropower, focus on completing ongoing projects, gradually diversifying power investment and business methods while protecting ecological environments, combining hydropower construction with water supply for production and daily life for ethnic minorities in the Region.

- Strengthen mechanical repair services serving agricultural mechanization, transportation means, agricultural tool production, and spare parts for processing industry; develop small-scale industries and produce traditional local products.

- Early invest in construction material production facilities such as cement, fired bricks, stone, feldspar, etc.; mine bauxite and produce alumina, aiming towards aluminum smelting, etc.

b) Agriculture and Forestry

Continue to promote agriculture and forestry production based on effectively protecting and exploiting the potential and strengths of the Region. Implement structural adjustment in agricultural and rural economy towards intensive farming, creating high-value products, and providing raw materials for processing industry.

- In crop production, intensify the production of staple foods, vegetables, and high-value crops; implement policies to support and assist ethnic minority households in building family gardens to improve and enhance daily nutrition.

The main task in agricultural production is to continue developing long-term industrial crops supplying raw materials for processing industries such as rubber, coffee, cashew nuts, etc. By 2010, aim to plant about 100,000 hectares of new rubber to increase the total area to around 200,000 hectares; reduce the area of coffee in water-scarce and less productive areas to stabilize the area at about 330,000 to 350,000 hectares, planting more cashew nuts and other high-value crops, focusing on growing high-end flowers in suitable areas to meet local and export demands.

- In animal husbandry, strive for an average annual increase of 3% in cattle herds, 6% in buffalo herds, and 3-3.5% in pig herds. The main task is to develop beef and dairy cattle, aiming towards concentrated, high-quality commercial production, with about 5,000 dairy cows raised in planned facilities by 2010, supplying enough milk for processing plants. Encourage households to develop poultry farming and aquaculture in suitable areas.

- Regarding forestry, review the planning for three types of forests: special-use forests, protective forests, and economic forests, transfer part of the area of protective forests to planting economic forests for allocation to the people for production, providing raw materials for processing industries, generating income for forest growers, prioritizing land allocation for households of ethnic minorities and a portion of workers living from forest-related occupations. Over five years, plant two hundred and fifty thousand hectares of new forests, mainly planting industrial wood forests and long-term crop trees to increase coverage; accelerate the allocation of special-use forests and protective forests to village communities and local ethnic minority households directly managing, protecting, and harvesting products from the forests. Strive to build the forestry industry in the Central Highlands into a key region for national forestry development within ten years. Consolidate grassroots forest protection teams in villages through the study and application of appropriate mechanisms and policies to mobilize the combined strength of government authorities, political-social organizations, and the people in forest protection; strictly handle indiscriminate logging, effectively prevent and combat forest fires, and strictly implement the policy of closing forests in provinces.

Continue to reorganize and modernize state-owned farms and forestry farms, shifting their tasks towards providing input and output services to farm households, returning land to localities to provide production land for the people and create jobs for workers.

Integrate projects to develop agriculture in an environmentally friendly manner, contributing to changing customs and traditions of ethnic groups in the Central Highlands.

c) Commerce and Services

Gradually reorganize various forms of commercial services such as markets, shopping centers, cooperatives supplying services to the people in urban, rural, and particularly difficult areas. Strengthen purchasing bases for export goods, paying attention to traditional processed products made from local raw materials. Prioritize the development of tourism to address labor, employment, increase income, and contribute to restructuring the economy.

Develop plans and programs for border economic zones with Laos and Cambodia; strengthen external economic cooperation in border regions, continue expanding cooperation with provinces of Laos and Cambodia to effectively exploit the potential of the East-West Economic Corridor, enhance exchanges among countries in the region for mutual development.

Develop postal, telecommunications, and information technology infrastructure in a synchronized and modern manner, diversifying service models.

Promote financial and banking activities to contribute to the development of the economy and society.

d) Science and Technology and Environmental Protection

- Enhance material and technical facilities and research staff for existing scientific research institutions in the Central Highlands to directly serve economic and social development.

- Focus on preserving and protecting landscapes and the environment, conducting environmental impact assessments for investment projects. Properly handle solid waste, hazardous waste, household waste, and medical waste. Wastewater from agricultural and forestry product processing facilities must be treated to meet standard B before being discharged into the common drainage system. Strictly implement environmental protection requirements in mineral extraction and processing. Severely deal with facilities causing serious environmental pollution (including suspending operations for investors to comply with the Law on Environmental Protection). Link economic development with ecological environmental protection and sustainable development.

đ) Cultural and Social Fields

- Education and Training

Increase the proportion of school-aged children attending school, improve the quality of comprehensive education, strengthen Vietnamese and ethnic language teaching for ethnic students at general schools; thoroughly combat illiteracy in remote and far-flung communes.

Train and retrain state management officials, enterprise managers, and personnel in economic and social sectors, especially ethnic minorities. All commune, village, and hamlet officials must attend medium and short-term training courses and obtain certificates.

Complete the construction of educational facilities from preschool to secondary school levels, prioritizing boarding schools for ethnic minority students in districts, community boarding schools in commune centers, and orphanages for disabled children in provinces.

Build the Central Highlands University into a Human Resource Training Center and a Scientific Research and Application Center for the Region.

Invest in upgrading and reinforcing schools and classrooms in the Region; construct vocational training schools according to planning, county-level vocational training centers to train industrial, agricultural, and forestry workers, and rural workers, including children of ethnic minority families. Apply on-site training models for workers to improve skills and gradually increase labor productivity and production efficiency.

- Health:

The main task in the Central Highlands until 2010 is to develop the primary health care network. Strive to ensure that all communes have health stations built to national standards by 2010, eighty percent of communes have doctors, one hundred percent of villages have health workers and sufficient commonly used medicines and medical equipment according to the list specified by the Ministry of Health; ninety-five percent of children in the prescribed age group receive full vaccination; reduce the rate of malnourished children below twenty-eight percent, eliminate leprosy, polio, and neonatal tetanus; prevent large outbreaks. Strengthen measures to combat the threat of HIV/AIDS.

Develop the preventive health care network to proactively prevent and control diseases effectively; at the same time, focus on investing in building a complete network of medical examination and treatment facilities for the people in difficult and remote areas; gradually promote socialization in health care activities, maintain environmental hygiene, and build healthy cultural villages.

Continue to implement Decision No. 225/2005/QĐ-TTg dated September 15, 2005 of the Prime Minister on upgrading district hospitals and regional general hospitals for the period 2005-2008, concurrently with investing in networks of multi-purpose health clinics at commune centers and village health stations to meet local healthcare needs for the people in the Region.

- Regarding culture, information, physical education, sports, radio, and television:

+ Strengthen propaganda, education, and mobilization work to encourage the people to implement well the policies and laws of the Party and State. Preserve, enhance, and promote the value of the cultures of ethnic groups in the Central Highlands; shift the focus of cultural and information investment, sports towards communes and community villages, prioritizing the construction of communal community houses. Enhance the synchronization of grassroots cultural and information activities.

+ Improve and enhance the quality of local radio and television programs, strengthen equipment, vocational training, and program development to relay central broadcasting stations, increasing broadcast time in ethnic languages.

Invest in building facilities serving cultural activities; prioritize the construction of community cultural activity houses; invest in material infrastructure for physical education, sports, radio, and television, etc.

e) Develop the Region's infrastructure structure

+ Regarding transportation, continue to develop the road network, taking Highway 14 as the main axis, developing transverse roads and east-west corridors to connect with surrounding regions and countries. The goal is to asphalt all roads to districts by 2010, ensuring that 100% of communes have motorable roads to their centers; continue to upgrade and expand some existing airports according to planning.

+ Upgrade and construct water conservancy projects (prioritizing medium and small-scale projects) to provide irrigation and daily water supply, combining with hydropower development, flood control, tourism, aquaculture, and environmental protection, striving to irrigate 70-80% of cultivated land by 2010.

+ Invest in clean water supply facilities in cities, towns, and densely populated rural areas; continue implementing the rural electrification program.

+ Expand urban areas while upgrading urban infrastructure systems, gradually promoting urbanization in adjacent areas and rural regions.

- Ensure national defense and security

Continue to build the entire people's defense force and a strong people's security posture; closely integrate economic and social development with national defense and security, especially along borderlines, remote areas, and ethnic minority regions, maintaining political stability and social order and safety.

Consolidate and develop military-economic zones, promoting economic and social development, creating a solid national defense and security posture, participating in implementing the policies of the Party and State being implemented in the Central Highlands.

g) Religious work and consolidation of grassroots administration

- Ministries, sectors, and localities continue to implement Directive No. 01/2005/CT-TTg dated February 4, 2005 of the Prime Minister regarding certain religious work concerning the Evangelical Church, continuing to publicize and guide the content of the Ordinance on Belief and Religion to ensure that believers comply with the law. Firmly prevent reactionary elements from exploiting freedom of belief to disrupt social order and security in the Central Highlands. Consolidate the unity of the people, creating strength to promote economic and social development, maintain political stability, and social order and safety.

- The current key task of the Central Highland provinces is to consolidate grassroots administration. Provinces need to consolidate and improve the political system from villages and communities towards self-management. Reform the content and improve the quality of activities of People's Councils and People's Committees at the commune level. Closely combine the construction and consolidation of grassroots administration with administrative reform and the implementation of grassroots democracy regulations. Reform the content and methods of operation of mass organizations and social-political organizations to be closer to the people.

Article 2. Continue to implement and supplement mechanisms, policies, and solutions for economic and social development and national defense and security in the Region

1. Continue to implement existing mechanisms and policies to achieve the Region's main goals and tasks, among which some policies need to be prioritized and implemented on schedule:

- Support policy for production land, residential land, housing, and drinking water for ethnic minorities according to Decision No. 134/2004/QĐ-TTg dated July 20, 2004 of the Prime Minister. Provinces should review and ensure support in accordance with objectives, standards, target groups, transparency, and openness. The goal is to resolve production and residential land issues for ethnic minorities by the end of 2008. By 2010, all households in the Central Highlands will have houses of semi-permanent or better quality.

- Support policy for essential goods for ethnic minorities in difficult areas according to Decree No. 20/1998/NĐ-CP dated March 31, 1998 and Decree No. 02/2002/NĐ-CP dated January 3, 2002 of the Government. Review and adjust assistance activities towards local autonomy in selecting targets, strict management, and direct delivery of goods to users.

- Continue to implement Decision No. 231/2005/QĐ-TTg dated September 22, 2005 of the Prime Minister on supporting state-owned agricultural, forestry enterprises, special-use forest management boards, and protective forest management boards employing ethnic minority laborers residing legally in the Central Highlands provinces.

- Continue to implement Decision No. 304/2005/QĐ-TTg dated November 23, 2005 of the Prime Minister on piloting the transfer of forests and forest protection contracts to households and communities of ethnic minorities in place in the Central Highlands provinces.

- Continue to implement Decision No. 150/2005/QĐ-TTg dated June 20, 2005 of the Prime Minister on approving the plan to transform the structure of agricultural, forestry, and fisheries production nationwide until 2010 and vision until 2020.

- Implement the project to provide electricity to villages and communities without electricity in the Central Highlands region.

- Continue to implement preferential credit policies for poor households, other policy targets, production and business households in difficult and extremely difficult areas through the Social Policy Bank and other microfinance organizations with preferential interest rates.

- Continue to implement Decree No. 134/2006/NĐ-CP dated November 14, 2006 of the Government on the recruitment system for higher education institutions, colleges, and secondary vocational schools within the national education system. Organize training and retraining for state management cadres at all levels, especially at the grassroots level. Relevant sectors have plans to train management cadres in their respective fields. The Central Highlands provinces are responsible for implementing training and employment policies for local ethnic minority cadres, prioritizing the employment of students who return to work in their home regions after being recruited for training, to encourage ethnic minority cadres and young people to participate in local socio-economic development.

Provinces, districts, communes, and wards develop plans to train and enhance their cadre teams, prioritizing ethnic minority cadres working at commune and ward levels and village chiefs directly organizing community self-management activities below the commune level according to Decision No. 34/2006/QĐ-TTg dated February 8, 2006 of the Prime Minister on approving the Training and Capacity Building Program for Ethnic Minority Cadres and Civil Servants at Commune, Ward, and Town Levels from 2006 to 2010.

- Continue to implement health examination and treatment policies for the poor and social policy beneficiaries according to Decision No. 139/2002/QĐ-TTg dated October 15, 2002 of the Prime Minister.

- Further promote the implementation of Decision No. 25/2004/QĐ-TTg dated February 27, 2004 of the Prime Minister on approving the Development Plan for Cultural and Information Activities in the Central Highlands until 2010 and the Enhancement of Local Radio Coverage in the Central Highlands during 2006-2008.

2. Adjust and supplement some mechanisms and policies as follows:

a) Education and training policies

For poor ethnic minority students studying in boarding schools and attending public or semi-public schools, they will be granted scholarships equivalent to 50% of the boarding school scholarship amount.

For students graduating from ethnic minority boarding high schools, they will be given priority for recruitment into universities, preparatory universities, and vocational schools to strengthen the grassroots cadre team; if not admitted to vocational schools, they will receive specialized and technical training suitable for practical needs and be assigned jobs in their localities.

Regarding training, utilization, and incentive policies for ethnic minority cadres: strengthen the cadre team in remote and deep rural areas through selecting some graduates from vocational schools (prioritizing ethnic minority children) to train them in legal knowledge, administrative management skills, economic management, mass mobilization, and information technology to assist commune and district authorities in socio-economic development, political stability, and maintaining public order.

For newly graduated ethnic minority students working long-term in particularly difficult areas, remote areas, and ethnic minority regions, they will be directly recruited as probationary civil servants with full salary benefits, regional allowances according to current regulations, housing support, and clear terms for strengthening the grassroots level; after completing their tasks, they can be recruited into state agencies at provincial, district, and commune levels. Cadres transferred to work in particularly difficult communes will receive increased salary allowances, early promotion by one year ahead of schedule, and housing support.

b) Human resource utilization policies

Enterprises that recruit and train workers to work stably in their enterprises will receive state subsidies equal to the vocational training subsidy for enterprises to organize training for new workers. Teachers and medical personnel who work long-term in villages in particularly difficult communes will receive housing support; those who establish families or bring their families to live there by farming will be provided with production land, residential land, and housing support according to Decision No. 134/2004/QĐ-TTg dated July 20, 2004 of the Prime Minister. Educators will enjoy benefits according to Decree No. 61/2006/NĐ-CP dated June 20, 2006 of the Government on policies for educators and educational managers working in specialized schools and in areas with extremely difficult socio-economic conditions.

3. Special Mechanisms and Policies

- Increase the maximum central budget support up to 70 billion VND for industrial park investment in localities meeting the criteria of Decision No. 183/2004/QĐ-TTg dated October 19, 2004 of the Prime Minister (including access roads or roads and bridges leading to the industrial park).

- Support investment from the central budget to build infrastructure for clusters of small and medium-sized industries up to 6 billion VND per cluster and up to 70 billion VND for a province by 2010.

- Provide 100% counterpart funding for ODA projects managed by localities that meet the support conditions specified in Decision No. 210/2006/QĐ-TTg dated September 12, 2006 of the Prime Minister.

- Adjust the drug and common medical supplies consumption rate for commune health stations, increase the allowance for kindergarten and primary school teachers and village health workers to 50% of the basic salary. Support living and travel expenses for inpatient patients (treated at district hospitals or higher).

4. Investment Solutions

a) Planning: relevant ministries, sectors, and localities review, adjust, and supplement sectoral planning and overall socio-economic development planning for the Central Highlands until 2020.

b) Investment planning: implement Decision No. 210/2006/QĐ-TTg dated September 12, 2006 ofThe Prime Minister on issuing principles, criteria, and allocation standards for investment development expenditures from the State budget for the 2007-2010 period, based on the development orientation of each sector, region, and the five-year plan of each locality and sector for 2006-2010 to arrange annual investment plans.

c) Mobilizing and utilizing investment capital

To implement the development orientation, plans, mechanisms, policies, and solutions for socio-economic development in the Central Highlands region from now until 2010, it is necessary to comprehensively mobilize investment capital belonging to various economic sectors investing in the area:

- State budget capital (including ODA capital).

- Investment credit.

- Capital of state-owned enterprises.

- Capital of private businesses and residents.

- Foreign direct investment capital.

- Other lawful sources of capital.

Prioritize state budget capital for infrastructure investment (completing ongoing projects; maintaining, repairing, and upgrading existing infrastructure; constructing new projects according to planning). Require ministries, sectors, and localities to reasonably allocate plans, concentrate investments, ensure timely progress, and synchronization to maximize the effectiveness of investment projects, especially reservoirs, irrigation and drainage systems, small-scale water conservancy works, and rural roads.

Ministries, sectors, corporations, holding companies, enterprises, and related localities need to establish mechanisms to mobilize capital from various economic sectors both within and outside the region to invest in production, business, services, and socio-economic infrastructure in the Central Highlands region.

Banks should facilitate loans for enterprises of all economic sectors and residents in the region to invest in production and business, particularly preferential investment capital for developing processing industries in the Central Highlands.

Article 3. Implementation

1. The Central Highlands provinces must consider the implementation of this Decision as a primary task during the period from now until 2010 for all levels of government, linking the implementation of the Resolution of the 10th National Party Congress, the Provincial Party Congress Resolution with the five-year socio-economic development plan 2006-2010 and the development orientation until 2020 for the Central Highlands region, to concretize into programs and plans of sectors and levels of government, mass organizations to organize implementation; regularly coordinate activities with ministries, sectors, and localities (educational officials, Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union cadres, border guard forces, economic units of the Vietnam People's Army working in the area to carry out land settlement, cultural life construction, illiteracy eradication, elementary and lower secondary education popularization...) in the region to implement programs and plans according to the objectives and contents of this Decision.

2. Ministries and sectors shall take the lead and coordinate with the Central Highlands provinces to organize the implementation of specific programs and projects within their scope of national management responsibilities according to the objectives and contents of this Decision. Review mechanisms and policies within their sectors on the territory, supplement and amend them appropriately; propose to the Government to amend overlapping mechanisms and policies that are no longer suitable, issue new policies to promote sustainable socio-economic development, political stability, and ensure defense and security in the region.

3. Ministries, sectors, and localities shall report periodically every six months and annually on the implementation of this Decision to the Ministry of Planning and Investment for consolidation and reporting. The Prime Minister.

4. Annually, the Ministry of Planning and Investment shall take the lead and coordinate with ministries, sectors, and localities in the Central Highlands region to review and summarize the implementation of this Decision, and report.

Article 4. This Decision takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

Article 5. The Chairmen of the People's Committees of the Central Highlands provinces and the Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, and Heads of agencies under the Government are responsible for implementing this Decision./.