Select important and urgent projects for the Mekong Delta

TPO - On the afternoon of January 3, Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long - Chairman of the Mekong Delta Coordination Council - chaired the 5th online conference of the Coordination Council.

Reporting at the conference, Mr. Nguyen Chi Dung - Minister of Planning and Investment - said that the economic growth rate in the area (GRDP) in 2024 of the Mekong Delta region will reach 7.3%, higher than the national average (about 7%), ranking 4th out of 6 economic regions. Some localities have quite good growth rates, Tra Vinh has the highest with an increase of 10%. Many key projects and works in the region are being implemented, and key routes are being accelerated.

Deputy Prime Minister: Select important and urgent projects for the Mekong Delta photo 1

Conference scene at the Government bridge. Photo: Duc Tuan.

However, according to Minister Nguyen Chi Dung, the socio-economic situation of the Mekong Delta still faces many difficulties and limitations. The regional economic scale is still small, accounting for only 12% of the country's total; 12/13 localities in the region have not yet balanced their budget revenues and expenditures. Climate change , subsidence, landslides, flooding, drought, saltwater intrusion and lack of domestic water are "hot" issues in the Mekong Delta.

Of these, three factors are strongly affecting the Mekong Delta: development in the upper Mekong River; climate change - rising sea levels; subsidence, lowering of riverbeds. The consequences are increased saltwater intrusion, erosion, lack of fresh water, flooding, and difficulty in drainage.

Concluding the conference, Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long said that since its establishment (in 2020), the Mekong Delta Regional Coordination Council has been on the right track in overcoming difficulties and achieving many important results. All 13 provinces/cities in the region have had their provincial planning approved by the Prime Minister; 5/13 localities have had their provincial planning implementation plans approved.

Localities in the region have proactively implemented linkages and connections. Many key projects in the region are being actively implemented and urgently completed, striving to have 600 km of expressways in the Mekong Delta by 2025.

In addition to the positive results, the Deputy Prime Minister said that the Mekong Delta still has difficulties and challenges such as: Slow growth in some localities; weak connection between farmers and businesses; not yet optimally exploiting the linkage chains in agriculture; small-scale production. Infrastructure, especially transport infrastructure, still lacks connectivity. Administrative procedure reform is still slow. Climate change is having a profound impact. Resources for construction materials are still difficult in the context of more and more large-scale construction investment projects...

Orienting the tasks for the coming time, Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long noted that in 2025, provinces and cities must focus on implementing three tasks simultaneously: Striving for high growth; organizing party congresses at all levels towards the 14th National Party Congress; and reorganizing the apparatus. We must be clearly aware of the tasks and feasible solutions, and especially have high determination to carry them out.

The Deputy Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to develop a comprehensive hub in Can Tho; build and develop key raw material areas, focusing on ensuring long-term and sustainable service for agricultural and aquatic product processing facilities.

The Deputy Prime Minister proposed to study and select important and urgent projects according to the Politburo's resolutions and regional planning to prioritize capital allocation in the 2026-2030 medium-term plan. In particular, appropriate capital should be allocated for investment preparation in 2025.

Canh Ky

Source: https://tienphong.vn/pho-thu-tuong-chon-cac-du-an-quan-trong-cap-bach-cho-dbscl-post1706550.tpo