On November 23, the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long held a Memorial in honor of late Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet.
Attending the ceremony were Nguyen Minh Triet, former President; Le Hong Anh, Politburo Member, CPV Standing Committee Secretary; Nguyen Thien Nhan, Deputy Prime Minister and leaders of ministries and central, local government and a large local population.
Vinh Long authorities have decided to build a memorial to honor late PM Vo Van Kiet in Phong Thoi Hamlet in Vung Liem Town in Vung Liem District as a mark of respect and gratitude to the late Prime Minister.
The work began construction in September 6, 2010, on an area of 17.300 sq. meters, which will include galleries, office buildings, a worship house and a garden, at a cost of about VND48 billion.
November 23 marks the 90th birth anniversary of the late Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet, also known as Sau Dan, who was loved by many Vietnamese people for his services to the country.
On this occasion, the People's Council, People's Committee and the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee in Vinh Long Province held a ceremony to mark the birth anniversary of the late Prime Minister.
On behalf of the Party Central Committee and the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Le Hong Anh, a Politburo member said that PM Kiet was a loyal communist fighter, an excellent student of President Ho Chi Minh, a reputed leader of the Party, State and people and an elite child of the people of Vietnam in general and Vinh Long Province in particular.
“The Party and State highly appreciated the comprehensive achievements of the province”, he added.
He expressed his hope that the Party, army and people of the province would further promote traditions of province where the late PM was born and make more effort to implement the tasks of the 11th National Party Congress resolution and the 9th Party Congress of Vinh Long Province to contribute to the province's development.
Late Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet started participating in revolutionary activities at the age of 16. During his life he went on to serve in many important positions in both the Party and Government.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Vietnam's economy was in a state of crisis with 3.5 million people in Ho Chi Minh City suffering of severe shortage of food. As the City's top leader, he took the brave step of introducing new measures encouraging local business development and the free flow of commodities. His decision brought a new life to the City and helped facilitate the formation of the Party's 1986 renewal policy at the 6th National Party Congress.
In March 1988 he was appointed as Chairman of the Ministers' Council and the Prime Minister.
He gave his full effort and commitment to every position he was assigned to. Vietnam's socio-economic achievements in the early stage of the renewal process (launched in 1986) have been heavily attributed to his contributions.
In the position of Prime Minister, Vo Van Kiet worked hard with other party and government leaders to lead the country away from the centralized economy towards a new market socialist oriented economy. The country's socio-economic conditions greatly improved as a result, as did people's living conditions.
Kiet's other major contributions to the nation was his decision to dig a long irrigation system in the Mekong Delta, bringing in fresh water to ease the salt ratio in water in the Plain of Reeds and the Long Xuyen Quadrangle. This scheme meant that farmers in the region were able to grow two different crops with a high yield every year, rather than one crop with low yield.
The country's 500KV North-South transmission line and the Thang Long-Noi Bai Express Way linking Hanoi to Noi Bai International Airport are two other milestone projects that were initiated under his daring and effective leadership.
