PV: Can you tell us about the formation process of Nghe An Agricultural Extension Center?
Mr. Ta Quang Sang:On March 2, 1993, the Government issued Decree No. 13/CP regulating agricultural extension work, and the Department of Agricultural Extension was established.
On September 11, 1993, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued Decision No. 1862/QD.UB to establish the Nghe An Center for Science, Technology and Agricultural Extension, the predecessor of the current Nghe An Center for Agricultural Extension. Thus, up to this point, the Nghe An Center for Agricultural Extension has just completed 30 years of construction and growth.
During its operation, the agricultural extension system of Nghe An province has been constantly consolidated, improved and adjusted. In particular, the quality of the agricultural extension staff has been increasingly improved in terms of both professional and technical qualifications, always meeting the requirements and tasks set by agricultural extension work for each period and in the future.
PV: As you said, in 30 years of formation and development, Nghe An Agricultural Extension Center has performed well all assigned tasks; so can you tell us specifically about the results achieved by the center?
Mr. Ta Quang Sang:One of the key tasks of agricultural extension activities over the past 30 years has been to build demonstration models and transfer scientific and technical advances through propaganda, training and vocational training in agriculture for rural workers.
In terms of model building activities, on average each year the center builds 25-30 demonstration models (cultivation, livestock, forestry and aquaculture) to transfer to farmers new technical advances; new plant and animal varieties; high technology, production according to organic standards, VietGAP... with a scale of over 6,000 hectares of agricultural, forestry and aquaculture land; more than 180,000 livestock, poultry, aquatic breeds of all kinds... for 33,600 participating households. The transfer and application of scientific and technical advances through model building has contributed to rapidly increasing the productivity, output and quality of crops, livestock and product value per unit area, promoting the development of agricultural production.
Regarding information and propaganda, 813 pages of reports and special topics have been produced and broadcast on the provincial Television and Radio Station, 31 pages of Farmers' Bridge, 366 pages of Agricultural Extension and 102 electronic pages of Nghe An Newspaper, 143,615 Agricultural Extension Information magazines, 660,000 technical leaflets have been printed, dozens of forums, hundreds of seminars, and study tours have been organized to transfer agricultural policies and guidelines, new technical advances, and advanced models in agricultural production from all regions to farmers.
Regarding capacity building training for agricultural extension staff and farmers, 14,251 classes have been organized, with 806,113 agricultural extension staff at all levels and farmers participating. In particular, from 2020 to 2022, capacity building training for rural and hamlet extension staff will be replaced by key village, hamlet and village officials with 329 classes, with 13,840 participants. The Center also coordinated with the Farmers' Association, Gardening Association, Farm Economy Association, Veterans' Association, Youth Union, Youth Volunteer Teams, etc. to organize 268 classes, with 13,400 members and youth union members participating. In addition, it also attracted support from other funding sources (from districts, programs, projects, enterprises, Decree 35/CP, etc.) to organize 862 training classes for 39,652 farmers.
Regarding agricultural vocational training for rural workers, Nghe An Agricultural Extension Center is the first unit in the country belonging to the provincial agricultural extension system to be assigned and licensed to provide agricultural vocational training for rural workers, with 19 training occupations in the fields of cultivation, animal husbandry, aquaculture and forestry, according to Decision 1956/CP of the Prime Minister since 2011. About 70 - 80% of students after vocational training have immediately applied the learned occupations to production and achieved economic efficiency.
Regarding agricultural service consulting: In person or by phone, the center has consulted thousands of farmers on project development, technical advice, methods of implementing model development, introducing addresses for supplying input and output products... In particular, consulting communes, district and commune-level new rural steering committees in building production development models, with 494 models belonging to the national target source for new rural construction. Regarding agricultural extension services, the center has coordinated with units and companies to implement 45 models, organized 26 seminars on transferring and replicating technical advances.
Regarding urban agricultural extension, with the attention, direction and support of the National Agricultural Extension Center, the "Urban Agricultural Extension" Club was established with 23 members, including the Nghe An Provincial Agricultural Extension Center, operating with many effective and outstanding urban agricultural extension programs, projects and models, contributing to the overall achievements of the "Urban Agricultural Extension" Club activities nationwide.
In addition, Nghe An Provincial Agricultural Extension Center also participates in state management of agricultural extension, effectively implementing tasks under the National Target Programs assigned by the Provincial People's Committee, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the People's Committees of districts and localities. Coordinate implementation and mobilize support funds from social organizations and international organizations to develop, improve capacity and effectiveness of agricultural extension activities.
PV: With such specific results in activities, the contribution of the Provincial Agricultural Extension Center to the overall development of the province's Agriculture and Rural Development sector is very noteworthy. Can you say more about this?
Mr. Ta Quang Sang:It can be affirmed that although the State budget investment in agricultural extension over the past 30 years has not been large, the results of agricultural extension activities have had a positive impact on production, contributing to the overall achievements of the province's Agriculture and Rural Development sector.
That is to gradually improve the capacity and expertise of the staff working in agricultural extension at all levels, basically meeting the need for quality and experienced human resources to effectively carry out the task of transferring scientific and technical advances to farmers, promoting agricultural development, and supporting the completion of the goal of restructuring the agricultural sector towards increasing added value, sustainable development and the new rural construction program.
Along with that, it contributes to rapidly increasing productivity and food output, bringing the province's food output from 480,000 tons in 1993 to 1,209,000 tons in 2022 (2.52 times higher). Promote chain linkages in agricultural production with some advantageous products such as rice, peanuts, corn, tea, sugarcane, etc.
Rapidly transfer and apply technical advances, advanced technological processes and mechanization into production. Promote the transformation of crop, livestock and crop structure to increase added value and sustainable development in response to climate change.
Build, form and develop production areas of annual and perennial industrial crops and fruit trees to supply the domestic market, export and raw materials for processing factories.
Promote forestry production, make strong qualitative changes, ensure ecological environment and people's livelihood, develop sustainably and effectively, and rapidly increase forest cover from 43% in 2002 to 58.41% in 2022.
Improve capacity, knowledge and transfer scientific and technical advances in raising cows, pigs, goats, chickens, geese, ducks, bamboo rats, etc. to people, contributing to maintaining the growth of the livestock industry at 4-5%/year, restructuring the livestock industry towards increasing added value, sustainable development, gradually transforming small-scale livestock farming into farm-based livestock farming, focusing on industry, applying advanced technical advances and high technology to the production of goods along the value chain from production to processing and consumption market, improving the efficiency and competitiveness of the livestock industry.
Rapidly transferring technical and technological advances into aquatic and seafood production, improving capacity, productivity, output, efficiency of aquaculture, fishing, and exploitation of marine resources. Many aquaculture species have been applied such as: shrimp, crab, sea bass, goby, soft-shell turtle, eel, red tilapia, tilapia, snakehead fish... with diverse farming forms in brackish water, freshwater, in cement tanks, tarpaulin-lined tanks, in rice fields... have helped to rapidly increase productivity and output of aquatic products. If in 2010 the output was only 37,950 tons, by 2022 it will reach 270,477 tons, an increase of 7.13 times.
Reporter: In order for the Nghe An agricultural extension system to have sufficient operational capacity and contribute to the successful implementation of the Resolution of the 19th Provincial Party Congress and the Resolution of the Party Congress of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for the 2020-2025 term, what specific solutions and tasks has the center proposed in the coming time, sir?
Mr. Ta Quang Sang:In the coming time, the Provincial Agricultural Extension Center will continue to innovate and build an increasingly dynamic and capable Nghe An agricultural extension system to perform well its advisory, consulting and support role in serving production and agricultural and rural development.
Rapidly transfer scientific and technical advances and link agricultural services along the value chain, aiming to create breakthroughs in productivity, quality and efficiency in developing agricultural and rural production and improving farmers' lives.
Diversify the contents, methods and policies of agricultural extension to satisfy the production needs of many beneficiaries, create many effective production models, increase added value and develop sustainably.
Strengthening facilities, equipment and resources to promote the application of information technology and digital transformation, prioritizing activities of building demonstration models, information and communication, training and coaching, to create concentrated production areas, goods according to value chains associated with the restructuring of the agricultural and rural economy, meeting well the needs of the domestic and export markets, contributing to the completion of the National Target Program on new rural construction.
In the coming years, agricultural production must be closely linked to the market mechanism, to the conditions of international integration, to large-scale value chain linkages, taking added value efficiency as a measure; therefore, the tasks of agricultural extension work must be comprehensively innovated in a more diverse, quality and effective direction to increasingly better meet the requirements of agricultural extension work serving agricultural production for farmers.
PV: Thank you!