The close combination of socio-economic development with the reinforcement of national defence and security is a fundamental and consistent viewpoint throughout the cause of building and protecting the Fatherland of the Party and the State. Adhering deeply to that spirit, Vinh Phuc Province focuses on leadership and guidance in the implementation of many comprehensive and effective measures to strive to become a developed industrial province, one of the industrial, service, and tourism centres in the Capital region and the whole country.

As the gateway to Hanoi Capital, located in the key economic region of the Northern Delta, serving as a bridge connecting the Northwest provinces with Hanoi and the Red River Delta region, Vinh Phuc not only maintains a significant position and role in socio-economic development but also holds a crucial responsibility for ensuring national defence and security in the Capital region and the area of operation of the 2^nd Military Region. Throughout the development process, especially in recent years, the Provincial Party Committee, People’s Council, and People’s Committee have recognised that without maintaining stability, there can be no desired development. The more the Province develops, the more stable it must be, and maintaining stability is essential for a sustainable, robust and on-the-right-track development. Therefore, alongside the primary focus on economic development, the Province’s leadership places emphasis on enhancing and maintaining national defence, security, social stability, ensuring the building of Vinh Phuc as a province with rapid, comprehensive, sustainable development and content population, matching its potential and position.

To achieve this overarching goal, the Party cohort, the authority, military units, and people all ethnics of Vinh Phuc Province proactively exploit all potentials and strengths, mobilise all resources, and focus on developing the provincial economy with an industrial foundation and tourism and services as breakthrough focal points. This is aimed at increasing budget revenue to invest in agriculture, rural areas, build a modern infrastructure system, and enhance regional defence and security, creating a balanced and harmonious development process.

Alongside economic, cultural, and social development, Vinh Phuc comprehensively and effectively implements the objectives and tasks related to national defence and security as determined by the 17^th Provincial Party Congress. Accordingly, the necessary and sufficient conditions for building an all-people defence posture, a combined all-people defence and security posture, with “people’s hearts and minds” as the core, and regional defence and security capabilities are increasingly enhanced and solidified. Efforts to educate and improve knowledge of national defence and security for various groups are intensified. In particular, military defence and civil defence structures in the defence area continue to be invested as planned, ensuring quality, progress, and adherence to the schedule.

In the coming years, the political security, public order, and social safety situation in Vinh Phuc are essentially stable, but there are also hidden complex factors that can directly impact the stability of the Province, especially non-traditional security challenges. These demand timely and effective resolutions in all situations. To successfully implement the resolutions of the 17^th Provincial Party Congress Resolution, for the term 2020 - 2025, along with promoting development in various areas, the Provincial Party Committee, People’s Council, and People’s Committee of Vinh Phuc Province continue to closely direct the integration between socio-economic development and strengthening national defence and security. This is done through various uniformed, appropriate solutions and objectives, aiming to foster a robust, sustainable, and humane development for the province. The focus is on several key aspects, including:

First, strengthen the leadership and guidance of Party committees and authorities at all levels in effectively disseminating and implementing the Party’s strategies and principles and the State’s laws and policies regarding the integration of the economy with national defence and security. This is the foremost factor and fundamental solution to ensure the proactive combination of socio-economic development with national defence and security enhancement in the right direction and with high effectiveness. Accordingly, party committees, authorities, and heads of agencies and units must fully grasp the resolutions, directives, programmes, and plans of the Central Party Committee and the Central Military Commission, with a focus on the 13^th Party Congress resolution, the 8^th Central Party Committee Resolution (13^th Tenure) on “Strategy for the Defence of the Fatherland in the New Situation,” and Plan No. 166-KH/TU, dated 07January 2020, of the Provincial Party Standing Committee implementing Conclusion No. 57-KL/TW, dated 16 September 2019, of the Politburo on the integration of the economy with national defence and security.

Also, it is crucial to intensify propaganda and education for the Party cadres and members, military members, and the people regarding the Party’s strategies and principles, and the State’s laws and policies, emphasising the need for and the importance of closely integrating socio-economic development with the strengthening of national defence and security. This is to enhance awareness, unify thinking, and emphasise responsibility in leadership, the guidance, strategic planning, instructions, organisation and implementation of the task. In addition, there is a need to proactively coordinate with central functional agencies, the 2^nd Military Region, and direct provincial functional agencies of to continue scrutinising and closely evaluating the development and implementation of socio – economic development plans, programmes, initiatives, and projects, ensuring a close integration with national defence and security.

Second, build transparent and robust Party organisations and political system; promote the exemplary role and responsibility of the leading cadres at all levels. To effectively carry out this task, the Provincial Party Committee focuses on fostering unity and consensus among the Party members, enhancing the overall strength of the political system. In line with their tasks, Party committees innovate their operational mechanisms, methods, and working styles to maximise the leadership and operational capabilities of Party organisations, especially at party-cell level. To carry out the pivotal step of this key process, the Provincial Party Standing Committee leads and directs subordinate Party committees with 3 directives, 1 guideline, 8 regulations, and 4 projects on cadre work. Accordingly, the Party committees assign tasks and assess cadres using quantitative measures and evaluate leadership effectiveness through tangible outcomes, this is also linked to the specific development of each unit and locality. This approach aims to bring about a significant transformation in working methods and manner, and the responsibility to set example of cadres, ensuring that agencies, units, and localities achieve the highest goals and objectives set by Party committees at all levels. Simultaneously, attention is given to the Party development work, particularly in 101 party organisations within enterprises, including 5 Party organisations of FDI enterprises; effectively carry out education. Furthermore, there is the implementation of party member training activities linked to the enhancement of the quality and effectiveness of inspection, supervision, disciplinary enforcement work of Party organisations, proactively maintaining discipline and upholding principles within the Party and throughout the entire political system.

Third, innovate the planning of socio – economic development to ensure the close integration with the tasks of national defence and security. The Provincial Party Committee and People’s Committee conclude the direction for subordinate departments and agencies to conduct research and surveys to identify the resources of each locality, resources from private economic components, and resources outside the public sector to develop appropriate and feasible projects and plans for each sectors in each locality. At the same time, they direct the military and police agencies to closely coordinate with functional agencies of the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defence, specifically the 2^nd Military Region, as well as provincial departments and agencies to clearly define mechanisms and responsibilities in coordinating the appraisal of economic, cultural, and social development projects and plans in the region. They also regularly exchange information, enhance the effectiveness of monitoring project implementation, and place special emphasis on guiding the compiling and implementation of economic development projects to be aligned with the overall planning of the defensive posture in the defence area and these projects must be approved by the relevant authorities at all levels. Additionally, industrial clusters, industrial zones, and key projects must ensure proactive readiness to serve the needs of national defence when necessary.

Fourth, enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of state management by authorities at all levels in combining socio – economic development with strengthening national defence and security. This is not only a crucial and necessary legal foundation but also a driving force to ensure a consistent, uniformed coordination in carrying out this important task. Each branch and level must perform its functions and tasks in accordance with the provisions of the law and Government Decree No. 164/2018/NĐ-CP on the integration of national defence with socio-economic development and socio-economic development with national defence. Furthermore, authorities at all levels must innovate their management and operation methods, starting from developing plans, programmes, projects to information gathering, processing, direction-setting, and enhance the supervisory role of the People’s Councils at all levels, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, and political-social organisations at every stage and step. This ensures that all plans and projects undergo thorough appraisal, especially for those concerning national defence and security factors. Consequently, in the planning and development of transportation systems, industrial zones, industrial clusters, craft villages, etc., there must be flexibility to both effectively serve economic development functions and be capable of transitioning production from peacetime to wartime, ready to be mobilised as needed.

Last but not least, innovate and improve the quality of knowledge and experience sharing in integrating socio–economic development with strengthening national defence and security for the leadership and management team at all levels. This is a pioneering and crucial task that must be carried out regularly, diversely, and appropriately to ensure the unified thinking and actions of the Party cadres and members and every citizen. Also, there should be efforts to combine theoretical knowledge training with practical application through exercises and field activities at different sectors, localities, and grassroots levels to enhance awareness and understanding, and ensure the organisational and implementation skills of party cadres and members, military members, and the people. The propaganda and education content needs to be deep, and comprehensive, but not without focused aspects to ensure the ease of remembrance, implementation, supervision, summarisation, and replication of successful models and practices in integrating socio-economic development with strengthening national defence and security in the new situation. This is aimed at building a strong and resilient “people’s hearts and minds posture”, for the robust and sustainable development and the happiness of every citizen in Vinh Phuc.

HOANG THI THUY LAN, Member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairwoman of the Provincial People’s Council, Head of the Provincial National Assembly Delegation