He made the request while addressing the VFU’s 8th National Congress, for the 2023 - 2028 tenure, that opened in Hanoi on the day’s morning.
The event was attended by 995 official delegates representing over 10 million VFU members and farmers nationwide. It also saw the presence of State President Vo Van Thuong, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, and National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue, along with many incumbent and former officials.
On behalf of Party and State leaders, General Secretary Trong lauded efforts by the peasant class and VFU chapters at all levels across the country. He also appreciated the goodwill assistance and effective cooperation from farmers’ organisations and international friends around the world for the VFU and the country’s agricultural and rural development.
He emphasised that the Party and State highly value farmers’ significant contributions to the national construction and reform, the building of new-style rural areas, and the development of agriculture and rural economy into a pillar supporting the national economy.
However, the Party leader also pointed out that the VFU’s activities and farmers’ movement have yet to keep up with the fast development of a digital society and the extensive international integration.
Amid the trend of ecological agriculture, he said farmers need to change their mindset and action to become a true stakeholder and the centre of the development of agriculture and rural economy and the building of new-style countryside.
As farmers are decreasing and aging while redundant workers in urban areas and industrial parks are moving to rural areas to seek agricultural livelihoods, VFU chapters at all levels need to reform their working methodology so as to be capable of fulfilling tasks and assisting farmers in the next five years and beyond to build a strong peasant class joining common efforts to establish Vietnam as a country with modern industry and upper-middle income by 2030 and as a developed and high-income nation by 2045, he continued.
General Secretary Trong asked all-level VFU chapters to push ahead with reforming their working methodology, quality, and effectiveness; properly bring into play its central role in farmers’ movement; and act as a bridge linking farmers with the Party and State.
He also demanded the VFU serve as an active factor of the great national solidarity bloc and the “workers - farmers - intellectuals” alliance, actively integrate into the world, and promote the effectiveness of international cooperation and people-to-people diplomacy.
In addition, the leader ordered all-level Party committees, administrations, Vietnam Fatherland Front committees, and socio-political organizations to create more favourable conditions for VFU chapters at all levels to operate. He also told them to properly carry out the Party’s guidelines and the State’s policies and laws on agriculture, farmers, and rural areas.
General Secretary Trong expressed his belief that after the congress, the VFU’s activities and farmers’ movement will record stronger progress to help successfully implement the resolutions of the 13th National Party Congress and the 13th-tenure Party Central Committee, build on revolutionary achievements, and develop a prosperous, happy, strong, democratic, equal, and civilised nation with rich people.
