125 years of formation and development

A corner of Bac Kan city today

Glorious historical journey

Bac Kan province was officially established on April 11, 1900 under the Decree of the Governor-General of Indochina, separated from a part of Thai Nguyen province. After 125 years of construction and development, Bac Kan has marked many important historical milestones in the struggle to protect the Fatherland as well as socio-economic development.

Since its establishment, the people of Bac Kan have always been steadfast in their resistance against the invasion and domination of French colonialism. The uprisings led by Phung Ba Chi and Ma Sinh Long laid the foundation for the revolutionary struggle movement that followed. In particular, during the revolutionary climax of 1940-1945, Bac Kan became one of the important areas of the Viet Minh Front. On August 23, 1945, the Japanese army withdrew from Bac Kan town, paving the way for the uprising to seize power in the August Revolution.

During the resistance war against French colonialism, Bac Kan played an important role as a rear base of the Viet Bac resistance base. The peak was on August 9, 1949, when Bac Kan town became the first town to be liberated during the resistance war against France. On August 24, 1949, Bac Kan province was liberated - this was a glorious historical milestone, an extremely great motivation to encourage and motivate the people of all ethnic groups in the province to contribute their human and material resources to the resistance war and national construction.

General Vo Nguyen Giap at a rally to celebrate the liberation of Bac Kan province (Photo: Archive)

During the resistance war against the US to save the country, the army and people of Bac Kan continued to make many achievements, contributing to the overall victory of the nation. Despite having to face the enemy's air sabotage, in 1963, Bac Kan was recognized by the Government as a province that had eliminated illiteracy with a rate of 92% of the population. Also in 1963, with a high sense of vigilance and realistic combat plans, the armed forces and people of Bac Kan province hunted down and captured a commando group of 5 members of the Saigon puppet regime, preventing all plots to build reactionary bases in the highlands, inciting the people to oppose the regime, and sabotaging the construction of socialism in the North. In 1965, the army and people of Bac Kan shot down an American F-105 aircraft. During the Spring General Offensive in 1975, Bac Kan contributed thousands of youth volunteers, making an important contribution to the final victory of the nation.

Construction and development phase

After the liberation of the South and the reunification of the country (1975), Bac Kan entered a period of overcoming the consequences of war, stabilizing life and developing the economy and society. In the first years after liberation, the people of Bac Kan faced many difficulties in infrastructure, education, health care and transportation. However, with the spirit of self-reliance, Bac Kan gradually overcame difficulties and improved the quality of people's lives.

On January 1, 1997, the re-establishment ceremony of Bac Kan province was solemnly held in Bac Kan town. This was an important political event, marking a new development step of the Party Committee and the people of all ethnic groups in Bac Kan province. The re-establishment of the province was a good opportunity for Bac Kan to develop its economy and society, strengthen national defense and security, and improve the material and spiritual life of the people.

When it was re-established, Bac Kan faced many economic challenges, poor transport infrastructure, and a high poverty rate. However, with the efforts of the Party Committee, the Government, and the People, Bac Kan has made strong progress in all areas. After 28 years of re-establishment, with the attention of the Party, the State, the Central ministries, departments, and branches, the Bac Kan Provincial Party Committee has led the people of all ethnic groups in the province to promote the tradition of their homeland as a revolutionary base, unite, overcome all difficulties and hardships, work hard, be creative, and strive to achieve many important achievements in all areas of socio-economics, national defense and security, and Party building, government, and organizations.

Delegates attending the ceremony to establish Bac Kan province in 1997 (Photo: Archive)

From a poor province, Bac Kan has achieved many remarkable achievements. The total GRDP in 2024 at comparable prices is estimated at 9,531 billion VND. GRDP per capita reached 57.4 million VND, reaching 102% of the plan, an increase of 45.92% compared to 1997. The province's forest coverage reached 73.38%, making Bac Kan the locality with the highest forest coverage in the country. Budget revenue in 2024 reached 930.3 billion VND, an increase of more than 55.7 times compared to 1997. The economic growth rate reached 6.35%, ranking 6th out of 14 provinces in the Northern midland and mountainous region. Increased investment in infrastructure has made the appearance of the environmental landscape, rural areas and urban areas increasingly prosperous. The material and spiritual life of the people has been significantly improved. The poverty rate has decreased from 50% in 1997 to more than 19% in 2024. National defense and security work has been strengthened, the national defense and people's security posture has been firmly built and consolidated...

With its achievements, Bac Kan province has been honored to receive many noble awards from the Party and State, such as: Title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces (2000); First Class Labor Medal (2006), First Class Independence Medal (2016)... demonstrating the attention and recognition of the Party and State for the continuous efforts of the Party Committee and the people of all ethnic groups in Bac Kan in recent times.

The past 125 years have been a source of pride for the Party Committee and the people of Bac Kan. With the spirit of solidarity and creativity, Bac Kan will continue to firmly step on the path of development, worthy of the tradition of its revolutionary homeland./.

Source: https://backan.gov.vn/Pages/bac-kan-125-nam-hinh-thanh-va-phat-trien-85d0.aspx