Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan hassaid the ministry will strive to surpass growth target as assigned by thegovernment this year. 

During aregular press briefing in Hanoi on March 2, Tuan said the ministry targets a3.05 percent growth, 40.5 billion USD in export earnings while 39 percent ofcommunes will be recognised new-style rural areas and forest coverage willreach 41.65 percent this year.

He asked thefisheries sector to strengthen inspections over illegal fishing, towardspersuading the European Commission to withdraw the “yellow card” warning to Vietnam’sillegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing by April 2018.

Tuan urgedthe wood sector to meet requirements on tracking product origin for export anddomestic consumption.

On the equitisationof State-owned enterprises, the Vietnam General Corporation of AgricultureMaterials (Vigecam) was successfully equitised and has operated as a jointstock company.

The VietnamRubber Corporation sold only more than 2 percent out of 11.88 percent of itsstake.

The Vietnam SouthernFood Corporation will conduct its initial public offering on March 14 andchoose a strategic investor. It plans to switch to the status of a joint stockcompany in the second quarter.

As of thelate February, the northern localities sew 907,100ha of winter-spring ricecrop, equivalent to 97.3 percent the same period last year.

In thesouth, winter-spring crop production reached 1,953,100ha, up 1.9 percentyear-on-year. The Mekong Delta harvested around 249,200ha out of 1,563,900ha.

TheDepartment of Crop Production reported that the winter-spring rice output inthe Mekong Delta hit 6 tonnes ha, up 0.5 tonnes annually with higher exportprices.

According tothe ministry, the export of agro-forestry-fisheries hit 6.1 billion USD in thefirst two months this year, up 30.2 percent year-on-year.-VNA