President: Developing green economy, making Co To a typical district

President Vo Van Thuong sent this message to the Party Committee and people of Co To island district, Quang Ninh province during his second visit and work here on October 28.

President Vo Van Thuong (right) receives flowers from leaders of Co To district, Quang Ninh province when returning to this island district for the second time after more than 12 years - Photo: TIEN THANG

On October 28, President Vo Van Thuong and his delegation visited and worked in Co To island district, Quang Ninh province on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the province's founding.

Impressions of Co To's changes

Expressing his excitement when revisiting Co To island district after more than 12 years, President Vo Van Thuong assessed that the appearance of the island district has changed a lot compared to before. From a poor, disadvantaged island district lacking infrastructure to serve people's lives and with up to 85% of the population being poor households, Co To has now truly become a well-off island district with an electricity system, open traffic infrastructure, and convenient travel.

President Vo Van Thuong kindly asked about children at Co To wharf area - Photo: TIEN THANG

"After visiting the island district and listening to the report of the district leaders, I was really impressed by the results that the island district has achieved. The average income of people on the island is now basically equal to that on the mainland, much stronger than before" - said the President. According to the President, the position of Co To island district is especially important, so it is necessary to unite to maintain the sea and islands not only for Quang Ninh but also for the whole country. Through the inspection of the training work, it was found that the preparation was good, Co To is also a stable fishing ground with high aquatic product output, attracting many fishermen from other provinces and cities to come to fish and there are also many generations of fishermen clinging to the sea .

President Vo Van Thuong visits fishermen in the island district - Photo: TIEN THANG

When meeting with the island district's residents, President Vo Van Thuong found that the people's material and spiritual life was very good, with basically no poor households and no social evils. What is very special is that the work of caring for education and training is focused on with a school system from kindergarten to high school. "I remember when I came here in 2010, the island district was still very wild, with few houses, but now it has progressed a lot, Co To has achieved the economic criteria of a new rural district, the people's lives are truly joyful and bustling" - the President assessed.

Fishermen receive gifts and national flags from President Vo Van Thuong on October 28 - Photo: TIEN THANG

President Vo Van Thuong reminded that Co To is the only island district where Uncle Ho agreed to have his statue sculpted while he was still alive, showing its strategic position and scope so that the Party Committee and people of the island district can clearly identify their noble responsibility as a "fence" to defend the mainland. "The Party Committee and the government need to identify that protecting the sea and islands is a sacred and noble task. We need to protect the islands, protect the forests and protect ourselves" - the President reminded.

Building Co To into a typical island district

To promote the development of the potential and advantages of the sea and islands, President Vo Van Thuong suggested that it is necessary to maintain the environmental protection of the island district. Developing fisheries, linking fishing and protecting aquatic resources. "Regarding environmental protection, among the island districts of Vietnam, Co To and Cu Lao Cham are the two best places, so it is necessary to promote this result, do better to attract more tourists to the island district" - he expressed.

President Vo Van Thuong inspects the quality of meals for officers and soldiers of the Co To island defense battalion.

Accordingly, it is necessary to build Co To island district into an ecological center in the context of the world's general trend of green and clean. Only when the environment is good will visitors come and maintaining a green environment is a difficult task. The President hopes that "each time I visit Co To again, I will witness even more outstanding achievements". Accepting the opinions that President Vo Van Thuong shared when visiting and working in Co To island district, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Ky - Secretary of Quang Ninh Provincial Party Committee - affirmed that this is a task not only of Co To but also of the Party Committee and people of Quang Ninh province. Accordingly, Mr. Ky said that Quang Ninh's goal is to build Co To into a typical island district of the whole country, the opinions of President Vo Van Thuong are the driving force for the locality to complete the task of building advanced new rural areas in Co To. Earlier, after docking at Co To port, President Vo Van Thuong and his delegation performed the flag-raising ceremony, offered flowers, incense and planted a memorial tree at the special national relic - the memorial site of President Ho Chi Minh. Afterwards, the President and his delegation met, visited and presented the national flag to fishermen at the storm shelter on the island district. They encouraged officers and soldiers as well as informed them about the combat readiness situation at the Co To island battalion.

President Vo Van Thuong burns incense at Uncle Ho's temple on Co To island district - Photo: TIEN THANG

When visiting and encouraging party member Nguyen Van Loc (87 years old, residing in Zone 3, Co To town), President Vo Van Thuong was impressed because this is a family with many generations of fishermen working at sea. Mr. Loc expressed that compared to before, Co To is much richer and more stable today, and the people are really excited. Mr. Loc has been a party member building a new economy in Co To commune, Cam Pha district since 1978 (now Co To district, Quang Ninh province). Up to now, Mr. Loc has been a Party member for 59 years, and his family has contributed to building, protecting and developing Co To island.

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