From September 27-29, 2023, under the framework of the Mekong Delta Climate Resilience Project, and the Green Innovation Center, GIZ Viet Nam in collaboration with the Ca Mau Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, organised a study tour focusing on good practices in cooperatives in Hau Giang and Soc Trang provinces. The delegation consisted of officials from the Ca Mau Sub-Department of Fisheries, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Ngoc Hien and the People’s Committee of Thoi Binh districts, representatives from the People's Committee of Vien An and Bien Bach Dong communes as well as leaders of rice-shrimp and mangrove-shrimp cooperatives in Ca Mau and Kien Giang provinces with Mr. Nguyen Van Trung, Vice Director of Ca Mau Sub-Department of Fisheries, at the helm.
After concluding the tour, the delegation expressed their appreciation for the study tour and the invaluable experiences they gained in management skills. The cooperative visits to Ky Nhu and Hieu Luc cooperatives in Hau Giang province, as well as Hung Phu cooperative in Soc Trang left a significant impact. Notably, they acquired knowledge in three key areas i) Cooperative management and development strategies geared towards market promotion for products and achieving sustainable development, ii) Capacity-building for cooperative members and fostering sustainable production practices and iii) Promotion of Shrimp Value Chain Linkages, collaborations between cooperatives and enterprises, including the application of international certifications such as ASC and BAP.
Furthermore, armed with their newfound knowledge and enriched by insightful discussions with representatives of these coperatives, participants are now better poised to usher in a transformative shift in their approach. This perpective inspires them to craft models that are not only effective but also finely attuned to the unique conditions of their respective locales, adaptable to environmental changes.
In the near future, MCRP is committed to intensifying collaboration and offering support to their couterparts in Ca Mau and other Mekong Delta provinces to expand innovative models. This will be achieved through bolstering the operational and managerial capacity of cooperatives.
The Green Innovation Centre (#GIC) Viet Nam project has been supporting business management enhancement for rice cooperatives in five areas including trust, finance, markets, business management, and technology in six provinces of An Giang, Can Tho, Dong Thap, Hau Giang, Kien Giang, and Soc Trang. Training and coaching activities aim to strengthen the competitive position of cooperatives and farmer groups, thereby leveraging advantages of innovations in rice farming.
Find out more about the GIC project funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) at https://bit.ly/gicvietnamintro
