Hanoi (VNA) - The “One Commune One Product” (OCOP) programme is being carried out in alllocalities across the country for 2018-2020, aiming to promote rural economicdevelopment toward increasing internal strengths and values.

Under Decision No. 490/QD-TTg signed recently by Deputy Prime Minister and headof the Steering Committee for National Target Programmes Vuong DinhHue on approving the programme, the scheme is part of measures to promote theimplementation of the National Target Programme on New Rural Building.

It will focus on developing high potential agricultural and non-agricultural products,and services in each locality based on the value chain, which will be carriedout by private and collective economic sectors.

OCOP products and services should be locally sourced or localised, especiallyregional specialties. They will be rated in five levels, with the 5-star is thebest, meeting international quality standards.

Groups of goods and services defined in the programme include food (fresh and processedfarm produce); beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinking); medicinalherbs (products made from herbal plants); fabric and textiles (products madefrom cotton and yarn); souvenirs - furniture - decorations (products made from wood,fiber, rattan, metal and ceramics); and rural tourism services and sales(services for sightseeing, tourism, study, research).

The State will play the role of promulgating the legal frameworks and policies toimplement the programme; managing the quality of products; supporting thetraining, application of technologies, trademark building, trade promotion, productintroduction, and technical and credit assistance provision.

The overall objective of the programme is to develop forms of production organisationand business (with the priority will be given to developing cooperatives andsmall and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), towards producing traditionalproducts and developing  services withhigh competitiveness in the domestic and international markets, thus promotingrural economy and the national agriculture industrialisation and moderlisation.

It is also hoped to help accelerate the shift of rural labour structure, protectthe environment, and preserve the traditional values in rural areas.

A comprehensive management system will be built for coordinating the programmeat all levels, while a set of criteria to value and rank products; and specificpolicies related to the proggrame will be devised.

By 2020, the programme will standardise at least 50 percent of existing productsor about 2,400 products.

It will also consolidate and improve production in the form of linkingproduction households with cooperatives and enterprises; develop between 8-10 modelsof tourism culture villages; and establish about 500 new SMEs, and cooperativesjoining the OCOP programme.

The programme will be implemented at an estimated cost of 45 trillion VND, whichis mainly mobilised from the society such as enterprises, cooperatives,production households as well as loans from credit institutions, investmentfunds, SMEs development funds, funds for developing cooperatives; andinternational organisations’ funding.-VNA