Being fully aware of dangers and negative impacts made by COVID-19 on all aspects of social life, the Provincial Party Committee (PPC) of Yen Bai has proactively, drastically, synchronously taken measures for the “dual goal” of COVID-19 control and rapid, sustainable socio-economic development.

In 2021, Yen Bai has performed its task when it has just successfully organised party congresses at all levels together with significant achievements in various fields, thereby creating a solid prerequisite and great determination within the province’s political system, enterprises, armed forces, and people. However, in the process, the province has been confronted with numerous difficulties and challenges as 2021 is the first year when it realises resolutions of all-level party congresses; meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic has been negatively, profoundly impacting on the entire Provincial Party Organisations’ performance of the political task. Grasping the Appeal of Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong and the Party Central Committee’s direction, the PPC has issued Action Programme 18-CTr/TU, dated December 18th, 2020 on “leadership over the task of 2021” according to which the province would “effectively fulfil the ‘dual goal’ of pandemic control and rapid, sustainable socio-economic development in a green, harmonious, distinctive manner” as one of its central missions.

Secretary of the PPC Do Duc Duy talking with the people on the National Great Unity Day

Effective COVID-19 prevention and control

Grounded on its preset programmes, plans, and targets, the PPC of Yen Bai has directed the entire political system and the people across the province to drastically, synchronously implement measures of pandemic prevention and control in order to flexibly, safely adapt to and effectively curb the pandemic. It should be noted that during the 4th wave of COVID-19, the PPC Standing Board has opportunely released Directive 12-CT/TU, dated May 5th, 20221 on implementing urgent measures for COVID-19 prevention and control in tandem with the political task of 2021. Based on that Directive, the Provincial Steering Board on COVID-19 prevention and control and the Provincial People’s Committee have issued nearly 200 guiding and directing documents. All-level steering boards on pandemic prevention and control have applied information technology and set up groups on Zalo platform to provide information and grasp quick reports from localities, while establishing and maintaining 1,614 self-management teams for COVID-19 prevention and control within villages and urban residential areas with the participation of more than 10,000 citizens, including retired cadres, party members, war veterans, and members of youth unions and women’s unions; they have heightened a sense of responsibility to encourage the people to strictly conform to measures of pandemic prevention and control. The PPC has attached importance to directing offices, units, and localities to more invest in facilities and medical resources under the four-on-the-spot motto and actively, opportunely execute COVID-19 vaccination campaign in the period of 2021-2022 within the province.

Thanks to drastic measures by all-level party committees and authorities, a consensus amongst the people, and a sense of responsibility of the medical, military, and public security forces, as of November 2021, Yen Bai was the only province that witnessed no community infection. That has laid an important foundation for Yen Bai to continue maintaining its position as a “green zone” and facilitate its rapid, sustainable socio-economic development.

Rapid, sustainable socio-economic development

In spite of being negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the province has concentrated on synchronously, flexibly, effectively implementing tasks and measures of socio-economic development. In 10 months of 2021, the province obtained significant, rather comprehensive achievements in its socio-economic development, with a GDP growth rate of about 7.03%.

It is worth noting that the PPC, the Provincial People’s Council, and the Provincial People’s Committee have promulgated many specialised resolutions, programmes, and policies to restructure agriculture and build new-style countryside in the period of 2021-2025, with a focus on developing large-scale agricultural commodity production, transforming from quantitative production into production of high-quality, high value-added farm produce, catching up with the market’s trends and demands, ensuring food security, and gradually shifting from agricultural production thinking towards agricultural economic thinking. Besides, the province has executed national target programme on building new-style rural areas in an in-depth, synchronous, solid fashion, promoted the strength of the national great unity block, and encouraged the participation of the whole political system and especially the people’s central role to mobilise human and material resources for new-style countryside construction as a typical example in the Northwest.

With reference to industrial production, the PPC has issued Resolution 29-NQ/TU, dated January 24th, 2021 on sustainable, effective, environmentally-friendly industrial development in the period of 2021-2025. Due attention has been paid to attracting investors and enterprises to the province’s major industrial development projects, such as premium building material manufacture, hi-tech wood processing, alternative energy, and infrastructure services within industrial zones and clusters. Industrial production of 2021 is estimated to be about 13,350 billion VND, a 13.39% increase compared with that of 2020. The index of industrial production has increased by 9.0% in comparison with the same period. Total revenue from retail trade and services has reached 21,310 billion VND, ranking fifth in 14 Northern midland and mountainous region.

Furthermore, the province has taken drastic measures to improve its investment and business environment, attract more investments, encourage innovation, and develop economic sectors. It has frequently worked with enterprises investing in its areas to settle their difficulties and facilitate their projects. In 2020, Yen Bai was ranked 24th in the public administration reform index, its provincial competitiveness index ranked 33rd place, and its satisfaction index of public administration services ranked 17th place.

Together with economic development, the province has implemented its resolutions and programmes on education and training in the period of 2021-2025, with emphasis on fundamentally, comprehensively renewing education and training, streamlining the system of schools and classes, improving the quality of education, and ensuring equality in education. Due regard has been paid to developing education in the province’s mountainous areas and the areas mainly inhabited by ethnic minority groups and adjusting teaching plans within localities in accordance with COVID-19 developments. At the same time, consideration has been given to building and multiplying models, such as “happy school” and “happy class” as well as movements to increase the people’s happiness index, such as “women actively, creatively study, work, and build happy families,” “happy hamlet and urban residential area,” and “dedicated doctor, happy patient.” Besides, the province has well performed the work of social security and sufficiently, opportunely provided policies and entitlements for people with meritorious services to the revolution and beneficiaries. It has recorded considerable achievements in sustainable poverty reduction. By the end of 2021, the rate of poor households will be reduced by 2.05% and the rate of poor households in the period of 2016-2021 will be below 5%.

Defence-security consolidation

The province has issued specialised Resolution 24-NQ/TU, dated January 20th, 2021 on “ensuring defence and security within Yen Bai province in the period of 2021-2025,” while approving the Project on “building the military intelligence - reconnaissance force between 2021 and 2025” and the Project on “building the militia and self-defence force and the semi-specialised public security force in the period of 2021-2025.” In the upcoming time, the province will continue building a “revolutionary, regular, elite, gradually modern” standing force with a high level of synergy and combat readiness and making this force politically, ideologically, organisationally strong. It will build a powerful reserve force, a “strong, extensive” militia and self-defence force, and a comprehensively strong public security force at provincial, district, and commune levels. All of those forces will play a core role in performing defence-security work and actively, proactively take part in natural disaster and epidemic prevention and control, search and rescue, hunger eradication, poverty reduction, and new-style countryside construction. Great value will be attached to effectively executing the movement of “all people’s participation in protecting national security,” preventing, attacking, and controlling crime to maintain political security and social order and safety within the province. Moreover, the province will raise the quality of district-level defensive zone and commune-level defensive combat exercises, fulfil the targets of military conscription, and deploy more public security officers to its communes to well perform defence-security work in the new situation.

Additionally, the province will focus on directing its authorities, citizens, and armed forces to realise the Government’s Resolution 128/NQ-CP, dated October 11th, 2021 on temporary regulations for safe, flexible adaptation and effective control over COVID-19 as a prerequisite for successfully fulfilling Resolutions of the 13th National Party Congress and all-level party congresses, fostering its economic development, and consolidating its defence and security.

DO DUC DUY, Member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of the PPC