Thoroughly grasping the Party's guidelines and strategies for building the national border of peace, friendship, cooperation and development, Gia Lai Border Guard has been implementing synchronous solutions to promote its pivotal role in building the strong sustainable all-people border defence, laying a foundation for well conducting the border defence work, contributing to the firm management and protection of national border security and sovereignty.

Gia Lai is a province with an important strategic position in politics, economy, defense-security of the Central Highlands and the whole country. During the past few years, under close guidance and leadership of the Provincial Party Committee and People's Committee, the participation of other departments, unions and the consensus of the people, the socio-economic situation in the area has seen positive changes. People's life has improved; grassroots-level political systems are regularly consolidated and operated in an effective manner; management and protection of border sovereignty, security and safety are increasingly stabilized.

However, due to its important geopolitical and economic position together with a large number of ethnic minorities and religions, Gia Lai becomes the main target of hostile forces’ sabotage, especially its ethnic minority areas. Notably, FULRO reactionaries in exile and "De-ga Protestant" often collude with domestic ones to provoke demonstrations, riots; undermine national unity; destabilize political security, social order and safety, with the plot to call for external intervention. Meanwhile, border demarcation and marker planting has undergone many difficulties; crimes, smuggling and trade frauds are on the rise; migration is unrestrained and complex, etc.

In response to the situation, the Provincial Border Guard Command has actively advised the Provincial Party Committee and People's Committee to strengthen leadership and direction over the implementation of border defence work, building a strong sustainable border area, bringing into full play the general strength of the entire people in managing, protecting border sovereignty and security, maintaining a stable environment, creating favorable conditions for socio-economic development. On the basis of thoroughly grasping the higher echelons’ resolutions and directives, the Provincial Border Guard cooperates with departments and agencies in advising the Provincial Party Committee and People's Committee to issue the resolutions, directives and legal documents to enhance the effectiveness of leadership and direction for border defence work, building strong sustainable all-people border defence. Grounded on the advice of the Border Guard, the province has built and well implemented Directive 23-CT/TU on strengthening the Party's leadership over the mass movement to protect border security; Plan 503/KH-UBND of the Provincial People's Committee to implement Directive 01/CT-TTg, dated January 9, 2015 of the Prime Minister on "Organizing the mass movement in protecting territorial sovereignty, national security in the new situation”, etc. The Steering Committee "The mass movement to participate in protecting territorial sovereignty and national security in the new situation" at all levels in the whole province is strengthened and maintains effective operation. Movements towards the border, the back line towards the front line; inland districts connected with border ones; activities to support funds, equipment and supplies, investment in building defensive works in border areas, etc. have been promoted. This helps encourage all forces and people to boost production and protect the area.

At the same time, the Provincial Border Guard promotes the propaganda and education to raise the awareness and responsibilities of localities for the task of building the all-people border defence, focusing on management and protection of border sovereignty and security. In order to effectively fulfil the task, the Provincial Border Guard has issued and strengthened the implementation of Resolution 01-NQ/ĐU on "Strengthening and renewing the mass mobilization of Gia Lai Border Guard in the new situation” and actively cooperated with forces in conducting the Project "Propagate, disseminate and educate law to officials and people in border areas". During the past few years, the provincial Border Guard cadres and soldiers have overcome all difficulties to reach border villages and hamlets, cooperate with fellow citizens in carrying out the work of mass mobilization; combine propaganda with education; work with the localities in the three border districts to well organize the "National Border Day" in association with traditional festivals in the locality. In 10-year implementation of the "All-People Border Defence Festival Day", the Provincial Border Guard has organized 60 propagation sessions for 2,760 village elders and prestigious people; widely held 11,264 sessions for 110,324 people; issued 3,546 leaflets, published 782 articles, 544 categories in newspapers, radio and organized hundreds of musical events. With active participation of the authorities, mass organizations and people, at present, the force has made two law bookcases in each commune; 150 tapes, video discs, 20,000 leaflets in two languages ​​(JaRai and Kinh) to educate ethnic minorities. This makes an important contribution to raising awareness and responsibilities of the committees, authorities and people in the management and protection of national border sovereignty and security.

The outstanding pivotal role of Gia Lai Border Guard features in its cooperation with the local Party Committee, authorities and people in building strong sustainable border areas. Accordingly, the Party Committee and the Command of the Provincial Border Guard thoroughly grasp and effectively implement the policy to dispatch Border Guard cadres to border communes; assigning Border Guard officers to take charge of households in the area and Party members to participate in party meetings at the village and hamlet. Up to now, all 7 border communes have had Border Guard officers and 06 comrades in charge of deputy secretaries of the commune Party Committee, all 50 villages have party members of the Border Guard. Thereby, the quality of the grass-roots political system has improved; the leadership of the party organization, management and administration of the commune authorities has been increasingly consolidated. The mass organizations operate in order; party organizations become strong and clean; people’s belief in the Party Committee and local authorities is strengthened. In order to form a remote border protection corridor, the Border Guard Command proactively advises the province to promote foreign affairs with the government and people of the province Ratanakiri, Cambodia, especially during holidays. In addition, the Provincial Border Guard has directed the Border Guard Stations to advise the locals on successfully establishing four twin villages on both sides of the border, strengthening the solidarity and building the border of peace, friendship and development.

Besides building the grassroots political system, the Provincial Border Guard actively takes part in socio-economic development, hunger eradication and poverty reduction associated with strengthening national defense and security in the border area. Accordingly, the Border Guard has advised the Province to prioritize the implementation of socio-economic development projects in three border districts; to organize a plan for population re-arrangement, ensuring that the people will settle down permanently in the border area. Meanwhile, the force helps enrich cultural values and improves medical facilities in villages and hamlets; building and replicating models of economic development in Ia Mo commune; planning mixed gardens combined with breeding in Ia Puch commune (Chu Prong district); "Kitchen of Affection" for poor students in Ia Dom commune, Duc Co district; "Breeding cows" program, "Support children’s schooling", sponsoring nearly 50 poor students, including Cambodian ones with 500 thousand VND each per month, etc. Notably, in the implementation of two national target programs on new rural construction and sustainable poverty eradication, the Provincial Border Guard has directed the Border Guard posts to work with border communes’ Party committees and authorities so as to help one household reach the target each year. Those actions of the Provincial Border Guard are highly appreciated by the committees, authorities and people; thereby, ethnics in the area are highly excited and confident in the leadership of the Party and authorities, contributing practically to building the "posture of the people’s hearts and minds", "the milestone of the people’s hearts and minds", firmly maintaining political security, social order and safety in border areas.

Furthermore, in order to build a strong sustainable border, the Provincial Border Guard actively gives advice on encouraging the entire population to participate in border protection and attaches importance to improving overall fighting strength of subordinate agencies and units. The Provincial Party Committee and Border Guard Command focus on making the organization and staff elite, compact, strong, and effective; strictly maintain the regime of combat readiness, patrol and control; regularly repair the system of trenches, fortifications, border guard stations and posts, deserving to be a specialized force in border management.

At the same time, the force closely cooperates with the committees, authorities, police and military agencies as well as the 15^th Corps, 3^rd Army Corps in the border area in boosting the construction of defensive zones, militia and self-defense and reserve forces, commune police, and people's security teams; well organizing mass movement in self-management, border protection and village security. So far, border districts have established and maintained 64 self-management groups; encouraged nearly 7 thousand households in the area to take part in border protection, contributing to the comprehensive strength in management and protection of national sovereignty and security.

With its assigned tasks and functions, Gia Lai Border Guard continues to promote its pivotal role in building strong sustainable all-people border defence in the province, contributing to firm management and protection of national border sovereignty and security in the new situation, practically gaining achievements to celebrate 60 years of the Border Guard Day (March 3, 1959 - March 3, 2019) and 30 years of the All-People Border Guard Festival Day (March 3, 1989 - March 3, 2019).

Senior Colonel Vu Trung Kien, Commander of the Provincial Border Guard