Successful implementation of the local defense and military tasks is an important content that has always been led and directed by Vinh Long Provincial Party Committee to  contribute to maintaining political stability and creating a favorable environment to promote sustainable socio-economic development of the province.

Vinh Long, a province in the lower part of Mekong river, holds a strategically important position. In the province, there are many ethnic groups living together, of which Khmer and Chinese people account for nearly 2.7%. There are four main religions whose followers accounting for more than 41.60% of the population. The people’s educational level is low, while the poverty rate is high. Its main economic sectors include agriculture, fishery, and commercial services. Over the years, hostile forces, reactionaries, and political opportunists have taken advantage of the unresolved negative issues arising in the society to constantly increase their acts of sabotage. The provincial Party Committee, government, and its people and armed forces, however, have always strived to overcome difficulties and challenges to generate the all-round development. Its economic growth has been maintained at reasonable rate, moving from rapid growth to green and sustainable growth. In the period of 2010 - 2018, the average growth rate reached nearly 7%. Meanwhile, social security was guaranteed, and the people’s life was constantly improved and enhanced. To achieve that result, the provincial Party Committee has focused on leading and directing units and localities to implement comprehensively and effectively all aspects of the work, of which, leading the implementation of defense and military tasks is a very important content.

Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee Tran Van Ron viewing training equipment of the Provincial Military Command

Thoroughly grasping the national defense and military policies of the Party, the Provincial Party Committee and People's Committee have issued resolutions, directives, and action plans on implementing the defense and military tasks. Its junior Party committees have issued specialized resolutions, programs, and plans to implement military and defense tasks at their respective levels. In directing the implementation, the Party committees and governments at all levels have well organized briefing, propaganda, and education to raise public awareness about the two strategic tasks, namely: building and defending the Fatherland; about the conspiracy and tricks of hostile forces in taking advantage of democracy, human rights, ethnicity, and religion to incite separation and undermine the great unity bloc. At the same time, the responsibilities of each collective and individual for defense and military tasks in the area, etc. have been clearly defined. As a result, solid changes both in awareness and actions of organizations and forces in performing local defense and military tasks have been made. The revolutionary vigilance and sense of protecting the Fatherland have been constantly improved. The people's beliefs, especially that of the ethnic minorities, to the Party, the State, party committees, and local governments have been strengthened and promoted.

The above results are attributed to many measures. First, Vinh Long province Party Committee has focused on leading the implementation of national defense and security education for all subjects. Implementing Directive No.12-CT/TW of the Politburo (the 9^th Tenure) on "Strengthening the Party's leadership in defense and security education in the new situation", the Province has regularly consolidated the Council for National defense and security education at all levels to ensure both quantity and quality and meet the requirements of tasks. So far, the national defense and security education work has been well and closely organized by localities under decentralization. The content, form, and method of education have been regularly renovated and updated with practical knowledge to suit with each subject. In particular, the Province has attached great importance to fostering national defense and security knowledge for grassroots officials, religious dignitaries, and prestigious people among ethnic groups, students, ... to ensure their capacity and qualifications to work well in propagating and mobilizing the people to be well aware of citizens' rights and obligations for the cause of defending the Fatherland and uphold the sense of responsibility in implementing the defense and military work in the area.

Building a strong provincial armed force to play a pivotal role in implementing the defense and military tasks is another measure that have been thoroughly led and directed by Vinh Long Provincial Party Committee. The Provincial Party Committee and People's Committee have always paid much attention to leading and directing the building of strong military agencies at all levels to well perform the role of advising and directing the effective implementation of defense and military work in the area. The Provincial Military Party Committee has led and directed the good implementation of political and ideological education to improve troops’ awareness and action contributing to building the provincial armed forces politically strong to serve as a basis for raising the overall quality and combat strength and well fulfilling the defense and military tasks in the locality. Concurrently, units have been required to thoroughly grasp and strictly observe the superiors’ order for combat readiness and plans for training and drills; review and supplement the system of combat documents and plans according to scenarios, and plans for prevention and control of terrorism, forest fire, natural disasters, and search and rescue. The practice of plans has been strengthened to improve the level of combat readiness and ability to organize and handle situations of the presiding officials at all levels and the mobility of the sections to make it relevant to the characteristics of the river regions.

In directing the implementation of defense and military tasks, the Provincial Party Committee and the People's Committee have always attached much importance to the advisory role of military agencies at all levels in forecasting situations and proposing measures to handle arising incidents, especially in important areas and industrial zones not to allow "hotspots" to occur. In addition, the provincial armed forces have also actively participated in the movement entitled "The Army joins in building new countryside" through specific and practical jobs and emulation movements, including: "Smart mass mobilization", "Military-civil Tet", "Joining hands for the poor", etc. Officials and soldiers have been mobilized to help the people build infrastructure and overcome the consequences of natural disasters, ... to create the trust of the local party committees, authorities, and people, contributing to building a steady “people's heart and mind posture”.

The Provincial Party Committee and People's Committee have also paid attention to leading and directing the construction of the militia, self-defense force, and reserve force in compliance with the regulations and close to the actual situation of the province. Last year, the scale of re-examination, registration, management, and arrangement of reservists reached 99.95%. 100% of reserve units have been consolidated the organization and personnel and fully equipped to be ready to protect the Southwest borderline of the Fatherland. The militia and self-defense forces were built in the direction of "strong and widespread" in accordance with Circular No.33 of the Ministry of Defense to ensure the reasonable quantity and structure and high political quality, working capacity, and sense of responsibility, especially that of the standing militia platoons in communes, wards, and townships. The percentage of party members in the militia and self-defense forces was 26.50%. Specially, the model of "Building the self-defense force at foreign-invested enterprises" of Vinh Long province is being experienced and replicated by localities across the country. 100% of regular training tests are rated satisfactory, including over 85.4% good and excellent.

At the same time, Vinh Long province Party Committee has also attached great importance to leadership and direction in combining socio-economic development with building a strong all-people defense. Thoroughly grasping the Party's viewpoint on combining socio-economic development with strengthening defense and security potentials, the provincial Party Committee and the People's Committee have directed localities, along with developing economic projects, to pay proper attention to national defense and security. In addition to the superiors’ funding sources, the province and localities have made a considerable deduction to invest in the construction of combat bases and a number of important works in the defense regions to meet the requirements of the defense-security tasks and well serve the socio-economic development, always being the leading flag and worthy of a central province in the Mekong Delta region. In the construction of defense regions, the province has paid great attention to building up the political-spiritual factor and solid "people’s heart and mind posture" in order to consolidate the people's confidence in the Party, regime, and local Party committees. On that basis, the strength of the people has been mobilized in implementing the defense and military tasks, maintaining local political security, social order, and safety, and building rich and beautiful localities. Promoting the achieved results and the tradition of the revolutionary homeland, in the coming time, Vinh Long continues to successfully complete the action program on implementing the Resolution of the 12^th National Party Congress and towards the 13^th National Party Congress to create strong changes in the quality and efficiency of the implementation of local defense and military tasks and ensure that each step of socio-economic development is a step to increase the strength to successfully implement the defense and military tasks, ready to turn into the strength of the people’s war posture in defending the Fatherland.

Tran Van Ron, Member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee