Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
TABLE 8.1
Average annual growth of area, yields, and output for rice in Vietnam,
1980-2002
Indicator
1980-88
1989-93
1994-99
1999-2002
Area in rice
0.01
2.67
2.61
-0.83
Rice output
3.96
7.23
5.46
2.35
Rice yield
3.93
4.43
2.78
3.19
SOURCE
: Information Centre for Agriculture and Rural Development.
exactly what Prime Minister Decision 80/2002-Q- -TTg, issued in June 2002, in-
tended. The decision specifically encourages agroprocessing and the production
of high-value products through contract farming, and many enterprises, espe-
cially big SOEs, have responded by signing contracts with producers.
In the winter-spring crop of 2002/03, nearly 120,000 hectares of high-
quality rice in the Mekong Delta have been contracted by about 20 enterprises,
which include Food and Agricultural Materials Company (7,000 hectares),
Dong Thap Import-Export Company (4,800 hectares), Tien Giang Food Com-
pany (5,025 hectares), Co Do Farm (7,300 hectares), Song Hau Farm in Can
Tho (5,600 hectares), and Food Company and Import-Export Company in Vinh
Long (11,000 hectares). Although it is too early to draw specific conclusions, ex-
perts expect that this arrangement will eliminate price uncertainties, ensure bet-
ter income for the farmers, and increase agricultural value added for the country.
Role of Parastatals in Rice Marketing
Background and Issues
In Vietnam, there is a wide variation across regions in specialization and agri-
cultural production. Rice is grown mainly in the Red River Delta and the Mekong
Delta, which account for more than two-thirds of the total rice production in the
country. In the Northern Upland, where the poverty rate is the highest, the main
source of livelihood is corn and livestock production. In the Northern and Cen-
tral Southern coasts, there is little land for cereal production, and households
make their livings mainly from fishing and aquaculture. The Highland special-
izes in cash crops, mainly coffee, and the area surrounding Ho Chi Minh City—
that is, the southeastern part of the country—specializes in agroprocessing and
peri-urban agriculture. However, as Table 8.2 indicates, rice is the staple for all
Vietnamese and is grown in almost every part of the country.
Given spatial variations in production, and the fact that rice is the staple
food across the country, efficient marketing is a precondition for optimal re-
source allocation. However, as in many other centrally planned economies,
there may be a role for the government during the transition from planned to
