Small farmers face many difficulties when participating in global value chains such as limited land resources, access to technology, bank loans...
C on promoting the integration of farmers into global value chains”.
The event has the participation, comments and sharing of economic experts, researchers, lecturers from training institutions of Vietnam and member economies of the Asian Economic Cooperation Forum. - Pacific Ocean (APEC), which aims to implement APEC's commitments and priorities in promoting capacity building, innovation, sustainability and inclusion through "paying attention to economic empowerment of groups with untapped economic potential” including those in rural and remote areas to “improve access to global markets”.
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The workshop cited several reports that the livelihoods of about 2.2 billion people around the world are linked to small-scale agriculture, as it is the predominant form of agricultural production in many developing economies. develop and develop. In densely populated economies such as China, India and Indonesia, there are nearly 310 million small-scale farms, representing more than 80% of the total number of farms in each of these economies. Although farmers may account for a large proportion, their participation is believed to be disproportionate to the potential.
In fact, smallholder farmers face many difficulties and challenges when participating in global value chains such as limited land resources, access to technology, innovation and bank loans, low skills. ...
Mr. Nguyen Van Tien, Vice Chairman of the Association of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, cited reality from Vietnam that pointed out a number of challenges, showing that the production scale of smallholder farmers is small, fragmented and lacks linkages. , inefficiency is a major bottleneck in participating in the global agricultural chain.
In addition, the level of labor in agriculture and rural areas is generally still low, with an aging trend (the age group of 50 and over increased from 10.4% in 2006 to 15.2% in 2011 and 26, respectively). 9% in 2020).
While science - technology, innovation and human resource training are still limited, they have not yet become the main driving force to create breakthroughs in development; Farmers' income is still low and the role of associations, socio-professional organizations and communities in rural areas has not been fully promoted.
In order to overcome limitations and take advantage of new opportunities, Mr. Tien proposed a number of solutions such as training, improving the qualifications and subject capacity of farmers, raising awareness and qualifications in the direction of "knowledge". farmers” to be able to master technology in production, processing, trade and get rich from agriculture; perfecting institutions and policies on organization of the value chain of agricultural and food products; policies, mobilizing investment resources, developing agriculture...
Ms. Pham Quynh Mai, Deputy Director of the Multilateral Trade Policy Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade), a senior Vietnamese official at APEC, said that the conference revolved around the content of promoting the integration of manufacturers, smallholder farmers effectively into global value chains.
Through sharing in-depth knowledge on the status of farmers' participation in value chains, the workshop presented opportunities, challenges and lessons to promote their participation in value chains. global rule.
Ms. Mai said that the participation of small-scale farmers in the global value chain benefits both farmers and the participants in the value chain, smallholders have the opportunity to participate in the global value chain. global value chain to be able to tap into niche markets with growing global demand for new and unique products. However, there are still many challenges that smallholders need to overcome to ensure a more active participation in this value chain.
“With innovative capabilities, the application of global standards helps small farmers access regional and global markets. There are many different approaches to promoting the participation of smallholder farmers in this large value chain such as through programs, the establishment of clusters, groups, cooperative groups, marketing plans aimed at small-scale households. small. Along with that, there should be close cooperation between stakeholders such as government, local authorities, NGOs to improve the capacity of farmers and help them participate in the value chain. globally,” shared Mai.
According to the newspaper: Nongnghiep.vn