HCM City will introduce measures to uplift farmers to ensure there are no poor farming households in the city in five years' time, the city leader has promised. Le Hoang Quan, chairman of the People's Committee, told a meeting held to review the cooperation between the People's Committee and the Vietnam Farmers Association (VFA): "With agricultural land shrinking, we should help farmers use modern technologies to increase productivity and add value to their products to raise their income. ‘Besides helping them select the best crop strains and animal breeds, we should also persuade them to be more aware of environmental impacts’. The city would no longer license golf courses, he said, adding it would also be more careful while making zoning plans to ensure the agricultural area would not shrink further. Nguyen Trung Tin, deputy chairman of the People's Committee, said under the cooperation program, the city had seen positive changes in agriculture. The VFA should be even more active in acting as a bridge between the Government and farmers, apprising the latter of policies and how they are implemented. It should ensure farmers supply enough quality produce to city supermarkets, he said. The average income per hectare for farmers this year has risen to an estimated VND170 million ($8,700) compared to VND138.5 million last year. (vietnamplus.vn Nov 9)
