Hanoi city: Mechanisms to promote rural economic development

Application of digital technology in agriculture

Hanoi has actively promoted the application of advanced scientific and technical innovations in production and agricultural businesses within the last few years. This initiative is aimed at fostering the development of a rural economy, and bringing high economic efficiency to farmers.

The digital transformation process helps farmers reduce production costs, and eliminate long-standing and problematic intermediate steps. Additionally, the process is gradually transitioning from traditional farming methods to modern commodity-based agriculture.

Modern agriculture demands professionalism, cooperative thinking, the ability to access scientific and technological knowledge. However, these are challenges for farmers who are closely tied to traditional farming methods.

In response to these practical demands, Hanoi City People's Committee issued the Hanoi City Digital Transformation Program by 2025, with a vision towards 2030, in conjuction with Decision No. 4098/QD-UBND, dated September 6, 2021, by the Hanoi City People's Committee. The program aims to support and collaborate with farmers in applying digital technology to production and product consumption.

The city will develop high-tech agriculture with a focus on smart agriculture, precision agriculture, and increase the proportion of the digital technology agriculture sector in the economy. There will be a focus on the application of digital technology to automate production processes, business operations, management, and supply chain supervision to ensure fast, transparent, accurate, safe, and hygienic food production.

The city also aims to provide training and orientation for every farmer in applying digital technology to their production, supply, distribution, price forecasting, seasonal planning, etc. Furthermore, the program will promote the development of e-commerce in agriculture.

Supporting the promotion of agricultural products on E-commerce platforms

In order to support the promotion of agricultural products on e-commerce platforms, Hanoi City People's Committee issued Plan No. 08/KH-UB on January 7, 2022, regarding the support for agricultural producers on e-commerce platforms and the development of the city's digital agriculture and rural economy. According to the plan, agricultural products will be promoted and introduced on various e-commerce platforms, including Postmart.vn (under the Vietnam Post Corporation) and Voso.vn (under the Viettel Post Corporation).

As of June 2022, Hanoi city has 141 supply chains connected from production to product consumption. Most notably, 50 households of farmers and cooperatives in Dong Anh district recently joined hands to introduce their agricultural products to the e-commerce platform. Farmers were guided through the process of creating an account, setting up inventories, listing products for sale, describing products, and gaining experience in order processing, order confirmation, and customer care for completed orders.

In addition, the Hanoi Farmers' Association, in cooperation with Hanoi Post, reviewed and collected information from at least 165,497 agricultural production households to update and introduce their agricultural products on the e-commerce trading platforms of Postmart.vn and Agri-postmart.vn.

Exemplary households known for their excellent agricultural production, cooperatives, and cooperative unions with safe, high-quality products, and certifications including VietGAP, GlobalGAP, and OCOP will be given priority to participate in the e-commerce platform. These activities will be organized for pilot implementation in Dong Anh and Chuong My districts.

Utilization of Artificial Intelligence in agricultural production

The Clean Vegetable Cooperative in Chuc Son town, Chuong My district is currently utilizing AI technology in agricultural production by installing the intelligent weather station system i.Mentos 3.3 A-G. Accordingly, the system provides updates on pest infestations, accurate weather forecasts, including temperature, wind speed, and rainfall. The system is expected to aid farmers in planning care and protection for their vegetables and fruits.

Mr. Hoang Van Vi, a resident of Giap Ngo hamlet in Chuc Son town, Chuong My district, shared, "After receiving training from the Chuc Son Clean Vegetable Cooperative on high-tech farming methods, my family built a 2,200 square meters net house equipped with an automatic irrigation system for vegetable cultivation. Although  initial investments in applying high technology to production is relatively high, households can recover the costs within three to four years. Our vegetables are currently marketed through the Chuc Son Clean Vegetable Cooperative at a stable price of 8,000 VND per kilogram. Consequently, we earn approximately 200 million VND every year."

Hanoi's agriculturla sector will focus on developing e-commerce promotion channels and advancing digital transformation within the next few years. This effort includes organizing trade promotion activities, expanding the market for key products and OCOP products, diversifying communication and advertising methods to reach a broader customer base. Additionally, they plan to develop chains of OCOP product stores and local key products on e-commerce platforms as well as tourist destinations within the city.