Lam Dong Economic – Defence Corps under Military Region 7 is tasked with developing an Economic – Defence Zone Project, taking part in socio-economic development, and cooperating with local party organisations and authorities in consolidating political bases, constructing residential areas and infrastructures, providing assistance for production, hunger eradication, and poverty reduction, and taking care of the people’s health in 11 communes of the three districts of Dam Rong, Lam Ha, and Di Linh (Lam Dong province). Prior to the implementation of the Project, within those areas, socio-economic development had been slow, the rate of poor households had been over 73%, the people’s intellectual level had been low, and many depraved customs had still existed. Meanwhile, there had been many destabilising factors for political security and social order and safety. Grasping those areas’ particularities and their assigned tasks, since the inception of Lam Dong Economic – Defence Corps, cadres and soldiers of the Corps have heightened solidarity, political responsibility, and resolve to successfully fulfil all missions. In the past 20 years of standing shoulder to shoulder with ethnic minority people, with its tireless efforts, the Corps has always overcome difficulties, maintained combat readiness, taken part in socio-economic development, and well carried out mass mobilisation work as a favourable condition for developing the people’s production and material and mental life as well as all-level defensive zones’ potential and posture.

To obtain those significant results, first of all, the Corps’ Party Committee and Command have focused on enhancing the work of propagation and education to raise ethnic minority people’s awareness and responsibility for performing economic – defence tasks. According to the Corps, mass mobilisation represents a routine, important task and its cadres and soldiers’ sentiment and responsibility towards all citizens in general, ethnic minority people in particular. Thus, in addition to resolutions on leadership over missions, the Corps Party Committee has issued annual resolutions on mass mobilisation work. The Corps Command has concretised those resolutions into detailed action plans together with uniform measures. Importance has been attached to organising the emulation movement of “clever mass mobilisation units” in tandem with the study and following of Ho Chi Minh’s ideology, ethics, and lifestyle and the Campaign titled “promoting tradition, devoting talent, deserving to be Uncle Ho’s soldiers.” Contents and methods of propagation have been carefully selected and made relevant to the people’s general intellectual level so that the people could easily understand, remember, and follow. As a result, the majority of ethnic minority people have been fully aware of the Party’s guidelines and the State’s laws and policies on ethnicity and religion and hostile forces’ plots and artifices, while actively taking part in maintaining political security, ensuring social order and safety, and building safe, strong areas.

It is worth noting that the Corps is stationed in remote, isolated districts with poor infrastructure, slow socio-economic development, and a high rate of poor households. Dam Rong is amongst 62 poor districts of the whole country. Against such a backdrop, the Corps has proactively collaborated with local party committees and authorities in fostering economic development and improving the people’s life in the Project’s areas. Adhering to the master plan for the North Lam Dong Economic – Defence Zone approved by the Government, the Corps has proactively cooperated with competent offices of Military Region 7 and localities in conducting surveys and designing a detailed plan for socio-economic development associated with defence-security consolidation. Grounded on those documents, it has focused on constructing traffic and irrigation systems, electricity grid, schools, health stations, and other essential works for the people’s settlement and production. In the construction process, priority has been given to strategic areas and important, urgent works. Due attention has been paid to including the Corps’ Project in socio-economic development programmes by the Government and localities to achieve a close connection and mutual support. Up to now, the Corps has accomplished hundreds of constructions within its Project. It has built nearly 30 kilometres of roads, over 2,000 metres of channels, and 1 water supply system for 1,000 households. At the same time, investments have been made in 5 electricity systems for daily life and production of more than 2,000 households. The Corps handed over infrastructures to localities after completing construction. In many places, citizens have accessed electricity, fresh water, and science and technology to apply to their agricultural production, thereby considerably improving their life.

Leaders of Lam Dong Defence – Economic Corps and Dam Rong district handing over a “house of military-civilian unity (photo: baolamdong.vn)

Moreover, the Corps has accelerated its programmes for hunger eradication and poverty reduction. Emphasis has been placed on developing agriculture and forestry, implementing technology transfer, and providing assistance for ethnic minority people’s production. Under the motto of “making the people understand, believe, and follow,” the Corps has directed its production teams and young intellectual volunteers to “live and work with” the people to assist households in crop/animal husbandry and application of scientific and technological advances to production. In addition to executing poverty reduction programmes via budget allocated by the State and the Ministry of National Defence, it has closely collaborated with localities in selecting households in difficulty to opportunely provide support. Over the years, thanks to its investment and troops’ effort, it has successfully developed and multiplied a large number of crop/animal husbandry programmes and models of high economic value. Cadres and soldiers of the Corps have frequently given instructions on preventing and combating diseases on crops and livestock to the people. Grounded on the State’s investment in the Economic – Defence Zone and resources from organisations and benefactors, the Corps has provided the people in 11 communes within its agricultural development programme’s areas with 65 Lai Sin breeding cows, 100 Red Angus breeding cows, 4,000 Luong Phuong breeding chickens, 1,600 Hmong breeding chickens, 50 tons of NPK fertiliser, and hundreds of tons of rice, corn, vegetable, and fruit seeds, worth more than 5 billion VND. Thanks to those above-mentioned activities, over 2,000 poor households have benefited from the Corps’ Project, which has made contributions to settling urgent problems of local authorities and citizens. The rate of poor households has plummeted since the construction of the Economic – Defence Zone.

In parallel with economic development, the Corps’ Party Committee and Command have worked with local party committees and authorities to ensure social security and consolidate political bases in the Corps’ stationed areas. Regulations on coordination to combine economic – defence tasks with the building of areas have been signed by the Corps and local party committees, authorities, sectors, and unions. The Corps has proactively given advice on consolidating all-level party committees and authorities, bettering the operation of mass organisations, and holding refresher courses on knowledge of state management for commune-level cadres, thereby making contributions to improving the quality of political bases and strengthening defence and security within localities. It has cooperated with local party committees, authorities, and unions in constructing 85 houses of “military – civilian unity” and launching 12 literacy classes for citizens of the districts of Dam Rong, Di Linh, and Lam Ha. It has directed its military medical force to provide free medical examination and medicine for the people, made donations to Agent Orange, gratitude, and “for the poor” funds, given financial assistance to Mid-Autumn Festival, presented pupils with gifts on the occasion of new school years and on International Children’s Day, and visited and given presents to war invalids, martyrs’ families, and beneficiaries, with hundreds of millions of VND. Visits to families under preferential treatment policies, village heads, village patriarchs, and difficult households as well as cultural, artistic, and sports exchange programmes by the Corps have consolidated public sentiments for its cadres and soldiers. During natural disasters and fires, the Corps has opportunely carried out search and rescue operations to minimise the people’s losses and quickly stabilise the people’s life. Notably, in the past 2 years, amidst the complex developments of COVID-19, it has proactively adjusted and supplemented its pandemic prevention and control plans/projects, while both widely and deeply conducting the work of propagation and education relating to COVID-19 pandemic. It has proactively given COVID-19 vaccine booster shots to all cadres and soldiers. It has established and assigned its medical teams to take part in pandemic prevention and control. With support from organisations and individuals, it has collaborated with local party committees and authorities in opportunely providing assistance for citizens in its stationed areas and transporting 70 tons of vegetables and supplies to Dong Nai province, Binh Duong province, and Ho Chi Minh City, thus making contributions to curbing the pandemic and bringing new normal to localities.

Promoting those significant results, cadres and soldiers of Lam Dong Economic – Defence Corps will continue grasping and effectively implementing the Party’s guidelines, the State’s laws and policies as well as resolutions and directives by the Central Military Commission, the Ministry of National Defence, and Military Region 7’s Party Committee Standing Board and Command on building the Economic – Defence Zone. Moreover, the Corps will enhance all-level party committees and commands’ leadership and direction over mass mobilisation work and cooperate with localities and other forces in effectively executing the movement titled “the Military joins hands to build new-style countryside” to achieve a solid positive change in economic, political, social, defence, and security terms within its stationed areas.

Col. HOANG VAN DINH, Commissar of the Corps