Agricultural connectivity bolstered in Dong Thap province

Agricultural connectivity bolstered in Dong Thap province

The forum kicked off on April 28 at Dong Thap Centre for Sports and Physical Training, attracting the presence of businesses, cooperatives, organisations, and individuals engaged in One Commune, One Product (OCOP) production and trading in localities across the Mekong Delta region, and several localities nationwide. In attendance are also district-level state management agencies at localities in the delta and several other localities, diverse trade promotion organisations, and those in charge of monitoring implementation of OCOP programmes.

Encompassing more than 350 booths, the event includes an exhibition space and a chain of associated symposia, such as the symposium on solutions to beef up e-commerce for OCOP, and a conference on bridging its products of localities in the region, Ho Chi Minh City, and Hanoi with distribution and supermarket system, and importers through both online and offline modes.

The forum features diverse spaces for products joining the competition to honour distinct OCOP items in the Mekong in 2022, space to present products in the northern region, food contests and trade booth sections, space to present distinct flora items, and nightly art performances.

The forum comes in light of the latest plan from Dong Thap People’s Committee on investment, tourism, and trade promotion activities in 2022. According to the Organising Committee, the forum seeks to foster cooperation between localities in the region, and between the delta region with central management agencies and other localities countrywide, laying the bedrock to promote and bring forth the potential for products through OCOP.

From there, it aims to bring exposure to the distinct culture of the delta region, and Dong Thap in particular; especially boosting the potential for local tourism development based on agriculture and rural advantages.

Huynh Minh Tuan, Deputy Chairman of Dong Thap People’s Committee and head of the Organising Committee, noted that as an annual event, the forum contributes to enhancing product distribution and market expansion, cooperation in production and marketing for OCOP items between businesses and production units in the delta region, and between the region with other areas nationwide.

The meticulous preparation of events within the forum aims to create distinct images that reflect the cultural values of local people and promote cultural and tourism exchanges between localities nationwide, ensuring effective implementation of the project and creating a distinct image for Dong Thap.

The active implementation of the OCOP programme in many localities in recent years has been contributing to spurring the development of the rural economy, improving people’s incomes, and promoting brands for a wide assortment of speciality products in the region, along with market promotion.

Leveraging distinct local potential, thus far the OCOP programme has yielded initial success with high spillover effects. Many localities in the region had ratified their OCOP schemes for the 2018-2020 period at district level. In the forthcoming time, the province is set to host the first-ever Dong Thap Lotus Festival, bridging tourism development between the delta region and Ho Chi Minh City. It is slated to take place on May 19.

On this occasion, Dong Thap will also be hosting a second forum on tourism connectivity between Ho Chi Minh City and 13 localities in the delta region, after the first forum took place in September 2019.