Economic development is the central focus.

As one of the 74 poorest districts in the country, Sop Cop embarked on the National Target Program for New Rural Development facing numerous challenges. The district comprises eight communes, mostly classified as extremely disadvantaged. Its vast territory, difficult transportation, and complex, mountainous terrain significantly impacted the implementation of the New Rural Development program throughout the district.

The Party Committee and the district government have always been grappling with the question of how to accelerate progress and improve the quality of the New Rural Development program in the area. After many meetings, Sop Cop district has identified a direction suitable to the local conditions: using production development and increasing people's income as a foundation to promote the implementation of other criteria.

Rural roads have been paved with concrete, making travel easier for the people.

Mr. Dao Dinh Thi, Chairman of the People's Committee of Sop Cop District, said: Building new rural areas is a broad program, encompassing many socio-economic, security, and defense fields... Meanwhile, Sop Cop District is a poor border district, and the lives of the ethnic people are still full of difficulties and shortages.

Anticipating difficulties, Sop Cop district annually develops appropriate roadmaps and proposes comprehensive solutions for implementation. In building new rural areas, the people play the main role, while the State provides support. On the one hand, the district promotes propaganda about the Party and State's policies and guidelines on the purpose, meaning, and importance of building new rural areas. On the other hand, to enable people to effectively play their role as the main actors in the program, the district has integrated various investment and support programs and projects to help people develop production.

Based on an analysis of the local potential and advantages, Sop Cop district has planned production development according to each region. All levels, sectors, departments, and organizations regularly propagate and encourage people to change their previous self-sufficient production practices to develop agriculture towards commodity production. Leveraging advantages, they promote economic restructuring, and build agricultural production models that apply advanced technology to production, bringing economic efficiency and sustainable agricultural development. Typical examples include pomelo cultivation in Dom Cang, Pung Banh, Muong Va, and Muong Lan communes; orange and tangerine cultivation in Nam Lanh and Muong Va communes; and white horse breeding in Sop Cop commune…

Orange cultivation model in Nam Lanh commune.

In addition, the district encourages people in the communes to develop large-scale livestock farming in the direction of concentrated family farms and large-scale farms, promoting the development of buffalo and cattle herds, with the white horse breeding model in Sop Cop commune developing well and bringing high economic efficiency. Furthermore, the district also focuses on innovating agricultural production organization. Collective economic activities are effectively implemented, with many cooperatives established and operating efficiently; this is considered one of the important factors in the socio-economic development of the locality.

New rural areas are flourishing.

Through support for production development, the lives and incomes of the local ethnic people have continuously improved and been enhanced. With economic development, people actively participate in building new rural areas, creating a widespread emulation movement of "jointly building new rural areas" across all communes and villages.

Mr. Dao Dinh Thi expressed his delight: Although there are still many difficulties, the results achieved in building new rural areas in Sop Cop district over the past years demonstrate the extraordinary efforts of the Party committees and government at all levels, and the active participation of the people. The district has mobilized the entire political system to "get involved" in implementing the new rural area program. The new rural area construction program has contributed significantly to promoting the socio-economic development of the district. The economic growth rate has been quite high, the economic structure has shifted positively, people's incomes have increased, and the poverty rate has decreased annually.

The glutinous rice fields in Muong Va commune, Sop Cop district.

Initially, when the New Rural Development program was launched, Sop Cop district had only one commune that met all four criteria, while the remaining seven communes met only one to three criteria. Thanks to the coordinated implementation of various solutions, the district now has two communes that have achieved New Rural Development standards; three communes that have met 8-10 criteria; and three communes that have met seven criteria. The economy, culture, and society have developed, and the material and spiritual lives of the people have been gradually improved.

According to Mr. Dao Dinh Thi, the greatest achievement in building new rural areas in the border district of Sop Cop in recent years has been the creation of consensus among the people. Through the public disclosure and transparency of all contents related to building new rural areas, people have been able to exercise their right to self-governance, thus actively participating and contributing their efforts to building roads, cultural centers, sports fields, etc., changing the face of the mountainous rural area. This result is the driving force for Sop Cop district to continue effectively implementing the national target program for building new rural areas in the coming years.

Ngoc Mai