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Communist Party of Vietnam    SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
Central Executive Committee   Independence-Freedom-Happiness

No 22 NQ/TW	                  Hanoi, 27 November 1989

POLITBURO DECISION ON GUIDELINES AND MAIN POLICIES FOR
ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE MOUNTAIN AREA

PART ONE

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC CONDITIONS OF THE MOUNTAIN AREA

The Mountain Area (1) covers extensive a area, over
three-quarters of the land area of this country, is the
traditional native place of most of the minority people and
is endowed with great economic potential, abundant, and
diverse natural resources .... With its broken and rough
terrain conditions, its extensive vegetative cover, the
Mountain Area plays a decisive role in environmental
protection. Extending along the Northern and Western
frontiers, the Mountain Area provides regular passes to the
outside world, and to the neighbouring countries in the
Region, and thus is of particular importance to national
defence and security.

During these last years, the population structure therein
has experienced big changes. In their communities, several
tribal groups still preserve their own coloured features,
but all of them have upheld a strong patriotism, a spirit of
national unity and have whole-heartedly contributed to the
victory of the Revolution, the cause of national
independence and sovereignty.

Overcoming difficulties and trials, the Party and People in
the Mountain Area have spared no efforts to build up
socialism, economic development, and strengths, thus
developing specialised zones of production of specific
crops, producing bigger and bigger amounts of agriculture
and forest products for export and many industries,
including cottage industries and handicrafts.

In some parts, the rural profile of the Mountain Area has
experienced noticeable changes: built-up areas, towns,
industrial centres have been erected. Many families from the
Deltas have come and settled in the mountains, bringing with
them intensive methods of land farming, and know-how for
cottage industry and handicrafts running. The Uplanders thus
have access to the new technology available; and many young
tribesmen have been trained in modern technology, have
become workers, technicians and even scientists.

However, the results attained are still lagging behind when
compared to the existing potential and the requirements for
development in the Area and over the country as a whole.
Generally speaking, the degree of social and economic
development in the Mountain is very low. The market economy
is not developed therein, a natural resources-based economy
and a semi one still prevail in the Area. The shifting
cultivation is not under control. The living conditions of
most of the Uplanders have been experiencing difficulties
and even in some areas intractable problems arise. Poverty
is spreading over large areas, with activities for culture
development not existing, the rate of illiteracy and of
school leavers remaining very high. Many social evils have
developed. Some reactionary agents and several enemies
taking advantage of the rough terrain conditions of the Area
are trying to hatch plots against all development of the
nation. Various religious sects are acting to develop
abnormal activities in some areas.

During these last, years, many state-owned units, especially
state farms and forest enterprises, have been established in
the Mountain Area. but many of these units have experienced
low labour output and efficiency in their business; they
occupy large extent of land but cannot use the land for
effective production, while the local people have no land to
live on, thus provoking discontent among the farmers and
making many forests and lands remained unproductive. Abusive
extraction of food and deforestation become more and more
serious. And due to a lack of appropriate policies and
approaches, the land and forest allocation policy is being
implemented with much delay.

Besides some co-operatives now recording some achievements,
all other co-operatives as a rule exist only on paper,
especially those in the High Mountain are not operating
actually. Family economy and appropriate form of collective
economy do not receive due attention of the planners for
development. Commercial transactions corresponding to the
present stage of small scale and dispersed production of
commodities are limited in their scope, and in some areas
they simply do not exist and/or are eliminated from
day-to-day life. The build-up of some Economic Zones has
been made following inadequate considerations of
socio-economic conditions, and a simplified, 'top-down' and
hasty approach.

The infrastructure, especially the network of access roads
in the High Mountain Area, isolated and remote areas, is not
developed, thus fragmenting the whole area into separate
parts having no connections with each other, and limiting
all outlets to the Deltas.

In spite of there being some industrial centres of scale
operating in the Area such as the Coal Zone, the sites of
some big hydro-electric works, the Mining Area, and other
Mechanical, Chemicals, Fertilisers and Wood processing
centres... they are operating quite separately and not
acting as cores for the development of the whole Area.

The above situation may stem from the to-day economic
setting of the country and of the Mountain Area in
particular, but the most important causes come from our
weaknesses in formulating economic and social policies for
the Mountain Area and in implementing them, namely in:

1. Absence of in-depth knowledge on the important role
played by the Mountain Area as a result of its physical
characteristics, its economical and social conditions: not
considering that the strengthening of the Mountain Area
should be regarded as an organic part of the whole strategy
for national economic and social development and not linking
and coordinating the development in the Mountain Area with
that carried out in the Lowlands. There is a lack of
comprehensive and overall research on all problems related
to politics, economy, social and cultural development,
national defence and security as they appear in the Mountain
Area within the context of tribal groups for the
determination of guidelines and policies for its
development. Investments are not used in an effective and
efficient way, with not enough attention to build up the
infrastructure therein.

2. The work to establish socialist relationships of
production in the Mountain Area has met many mistakes.
Emphasis was laid upon the construction of big-scale
state-owned units; social reshuffling to build up
agricultural socialist communities has been made following
'mechanical' ways, basing it upon models from the Deltas and
not considering the standards of production and the social
conditions prevailing in the Mountain Area. These approaches
and ways of doing have limited the development therein and
have caused many undesired consequences in the economy, the
society and politics.

3. The education, training and upgrading of local cadres,
and personnel policies for them and for officers coming from
the lowlands suffer from a lack of research, and are
implementing in a inconsistent and improvised way, not
encouraging cadres from the Delta to be fully involved
during their all life to various activities in the Mountain
Area still lack a full body of qualified officers that have
adequate knowledge on the environment and enough enthusiasm
to work for the strengthening and development of the
Mountain Area.

4. Leadership and direction from Central Agencies do not
meet the requirements for the Mountain Area to develop its
important strategic position; the effectiveness of many
activities remains low; many sectors, administrative levels
from the Central Government down to the local level show
many weaknesses such as lack of responsibility, being
'bureaucratic', 'passive' in their dealing, carrying no
monitoring activities, having no initiatives.

The above situation requires urgent approaches to determine
appropriate and right guidelines and policies to strongly
develop the economic and social conditions in the Mountain
Area, to make it stronger in all aspects. This is not only
an urgent need of the Mountain Area, but also a very
important task for long-term development of the country.

---------

(1) Including all Mountain Provinces in the North, the
Western High Plateaux, and other districts and villages in
the Mountain Area of other provinces.

PART TWO

GUIDELINES AND MAIN POLICIES FOR ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL
DEVELOPMENT IN THE MOUNTAIN AREA.

To determine the guidelines and main policies for economic
and social development in the Mountain Area following the
spirit of the VIth Party Congress Decisions and of other
Decisions made by the Central Executive Committee, it is
essential to have an in-depth knowledge on the following
concepts.

First, economic and social development in the Mountain Area
should be regarded as an organic part of the national
economic development strategy. On the one hand, various
provinces and districts in the Mountain Area should
contribute their efforts to the development of economic and
social conditions of the whole country. On the other hand,
the detailed planning and implementation of general
guidelines and main policies for the Mountain Area
development should be carried out with a fuller attention to
the physical, historical, economic, social, cultural,
traditional habits and customs conditions of the Mountain
Area in general and of the specific areas and tribal groups
involved, while doing this, emphasis should be laid upon the
dynamics, the creativeness of the provinces and units
therein;

Second, the work of building up socialism, of developing the
economic and cultural conditions in the Mountain Area should
be regarded as a work in which all the nation should be
involved, especially the minority people living in the
Mountain Area and the Lowlanders coming to settle therein.
Harnessing the resources and developing them are for the
direct benefits of the local people therein, and at the same
time for the common benefits of the whole nation.

The soil and other natural resources of the Mountain Area
are a common asset of the Nation, belonging to the people.
However, the mountain people have the direct
responsibilities and rights to make use of the soil, forest
and other resources for their own benefits and for the
benefits of the society, at the same time they should
contribute to the maintenance and defence of the national
frontiers.

It is essential to fight against the concept that natural
resources can be harvested without any care for their
protection, rehabilitation, renewal and improvement, which
has caused the forest and natural resources therein to
deteriorate, and the environmental and ecological conditions
to be destroyed, thus causing impacts of long duration on
many aspects of the national economy.

While developing strategies for economic and social
development in the Mountain Area, it is essential to bear in
mind the following motto: 'The central and local authorities
should work together, the State and the People should all
contribute their efforts'; on the one hand, it is necessary
to rule out all beliefs that 'we can wait', that assistance
may come the Central Budget, and all thinking that the local
resources and efforts are of lesser importance; on the other
hand, the State should to allocate enough funding to the
Mountain Area, first for it to develop its network of road,
communication, electric and water supply for improving
conditions for industrial development and bettering the
living conditions therein. At the same time, it is necessary
to formulate appropriate policies to create better
conditions and mobilise all the resources of the people
living in the Mountain Area for developing all the economic
potential and strength, the market economy, the effective
farming of land therein, so to gradually accumulate enough
capital for further development for the Area.

Third, it is essential to have a fuller understanding of the
approach of developing a market economy with the involvement
of many State and private-owned sectors to build up
socialism following appropriate planning; the main point is
to readjust the relationships of production in the Mountain
Area to make them suitable to the nature and standard of the
means of production available; it is of importance to
respect the self-determination of the people in their choice
of the appropriate forms and mechanisms for economic
management, basing for it mainly on the effectiveness and
efficiency of the measures involved, and avoiding all
formalism, and the 'mechanical' application and introduction
of ready-made models available elsewhere.

It is essential to build up State-owned enterprises based
upon the effectiveness of their activities, thus creating
the cores for further economic and social development in the
Mountain Area; to extend the application of gradual
transitional forms of collective farming of various degrees
of collectivisation, from the lowest to higher degrees, with
emphasis being laid upon the creation of family economy; to
encourage investors to carry business on forestry,
industrial activities, commodities transportation and
technical services; to develop freedom in goods exchange,
distribution and selling on a liberal basis; to attract
investments and assistance from foreign countries for
economic and cultural development in the Mountain Area.

Fourth, an overall development of economic, political,
cultural, social, national defence and security conditions
should be the main point, in which social and economic
development combined with better implementation of the
'nationalities policies' of the Party is most essential.
Emphasis should be laid upon the solving of various social
problems, the bettering of physical and cultural conditions
of the people.

To apply the rights to equality between various
nationalities in practice, legislation should be worked out
to secure these rights; but on the other hand, policies and
opportunities should be provided and elaborated so that all
tribal groups can to their best to develop their economic
and cultural conditions for them to gradually improve their
labour outputs, their living and educational standards; for
this, emphasis should be laid upon the training of local
cadres; it also necessary to respect and encourage the
application of good habits, customs and traditions of the
hill tribes. The civilisation the Mountain Area should be
built up with a mix of 'locally coloured' cultures
prevailing therein with an intelligent acceptance of the
cream of other civilisations coming from various
communities, thus contributing to the formation of a
national civilisation that is characterised by its richness,
diversity stemming from various communities living in
Vietnam.

With regard to national defence and security, it is
necessary to implement the decisions set out in the
Decisions nos. 02 and 07 of the Politburo (legislature
VIth),to apply them properly to the conditions prevailing in
the Mountain Area. Protecting the frontiers of the
Fatherland and protecting the Mountain Area are the common
responsibility of Nation; however, these are most essential
for the living of the Uplanders. The cadres and fighters in
the national defence and security forces to protect the
Mountain Area (and in the Frontier Warding Forces as well)
should be selected from the youths of various tribal groups
for training.

To secure an overall development and long-term development
in the Mountain Area, the most decisive task is to
strengthen the Party organisation therein; it is vital to
develop the Party organisation so to make it into a body of
elites having enough intellectual power, representing all
the tribal groups therein, knowing all their benefits and
aspirations, always in touch with the people at large, and
being the right core of leaderships for socialism
construction in the Mountain Area, thus contributing to its
consolidation over the whole country.

The above-mentioned concepts are the bases for the
determination of guidelines and main policies for economic
and social development in the Mountain Area for the coming
year, which cover the following topics:

I/ Build-up of economic structures in the Mountain Area,
with an orientation to develop the market economy, to link
the activities therein with those carried out in the Deltas,
and to promote the strengths of each part of the Area.

1. AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY.

The food problem in the Mountain Area should be dealt, with
a 'market economy' outlook, through the development of
economic potential in each zone and/or area, so to rule out
any attempt to maintain self-sufficient economy in all
areas. Based on that, it is necessary to practise intensive
methods for food production on areas of favourable
conditions, ie. in key areas for food production, where
facilities for water supply are existing.

On the other hand, to have a wider range of commodities for
exchange for food and other consumables, it is necessary to
encourage the production, the processing and the consumption
of goods that are mainly produced in the Mountain Area such
as non-wood forest products, drug plants, upland farm and
industrial crops, fruit crops, cattle products, minerals
....

The point is to encourage families of tribesmen, civil
servants, workers, basic economic units, government
agencies, schools, army units to carry out tree planting,
forest maintenance, cultivation on open lands and denuded
hills, following a wide range of practise and systems such
as some gardens, forest-gardens, tree farms.

For better control of shifting cultivation and settlement,
it is necessary to build up key areas for the
sedentarisation of tribal groups, so to be able to provide
enough land for farming, to gradually improve the network of
access roads and water supply and to wear the cultivators to
intensive farming of upland and develop their family
economy.

In places where the population is quite dense, land hunger
noticeable and the farmers are willing to move to other
areas of better conditions for their living, the State shall
apply the same policies as with farmers going to be
established in New Economic Zones, it shall make good
planning for bringing the settlers to the new areas on a
voluntary basis and with good arrangements made between
families of same progenitor from start to finish, so to help
the settlers stabilise their production, thus ensuring
solidarity among various tribal groups involved. The funding
for this is appropriated to various local authorities for
carrying out the plans.

Parallel with the promotion of tree planting, forest
plantation, especially the promotion of wood lot
establishment among rural farmers, it is necessary to
organise rational harvesting in mature wood stands, and at
the same to limit the spread of careless timber extraction
in critical watersheds, protection forests and degraded
forests, especially so for the coming years. It is also
indispensable to encourage the economical utilisation of
timber, especially that of prime timber. Strict limitations
of round timber export should be in force.

2. INDUSTRIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE STRENGTHENING

The point is to develop the processing industries, the
cottage industries and various handicrafts in the rural area
first, it is necessary to develop the agriculture and forest
products processing industries, following small and medium
sizes mainly, so to make various enterprises suitable for
their running by separate households. It is also
indispensable to develop the traditional industries of the
tribesmen such as the making of laces, embroideries, bamboo
mats ...; to develop new industries, especially those
industries that can take advantage of the raw materials
readily available from the localities; to organise at a
larger extent than before the preliminary and rough
processing of agriculture and forest products by individual
households. Other units having modern equipment should deal
with finer processing and milling so to improve the quality
of the goods sold to other markets. The development of
industries and businesses should follow an integrated
approach, with improved supply of technical services and
efforts for the selling of the goods produced.

Restructuring and renewing the managerial mechanisms in the
basic units of production on big industries, including those
in the national defence industries are another point of
importance. Efforts should be done to use all the rated
capacity and develop new potential for higher production. A
further step will be the linking of these industries with
smaller enterprises operating in various areas, this
creating new networks and centres for technical and cultural
services in each area, and meeting the needs of the local
population in consumables, capital equipment, technical
services and machine repairs.

With regard to transportation facilities, efforts should be
made to obtain more investments from both the central
Government and local authorities, to mobilise the armed
forces and voluntary youths for carrying out infrastructure
constructions, to urge various state-owned enterprises
operating in the Mountain. Area to pool their resources for
road making, and at the same to make loans from foreign
countries for constructing and upgrading the main networks
in the most important economic centres. It is vital to
increase the number of mechanised transportation facilities,
but at the same time not to neglect the development of
traditional means. The Government shall sell transportation
facilities to private entrepreneurs and encourage them to
carry out transportation business in the Mountain Area,
without any restrictions whatsoever on the scale and the
distance involved; at the same time transportation by
waterways should be developed wherever it can be done.

For power development, the main task is to supply as soon as
possible electric power to localities next to hydro-electric
power works. At the same time, efforts should be made to
develop small hydro-electic power stations and other sources
of energy, following the approach that collective units,
enterprises and people should pool their resources for power
supply development in various settlements, villages and
groups of households.

For water supply, it is indispensable that parallel with
efforts made to improve the effectiveness of big dams and
reservoirs so far constructed, activities should be carried
out to mobilise local authorities and people resources for
building up small dams to supply water for intensive land
farming, to develop fisheries in rural areas and to improve
environmental conditions. Better and adequate supply of
water pumps as they are needed in various areas should be
the rule; especially in areas of industrial and cash crops,
water pumps should be sold to all users that need them.
Baseline surveys and advanced activities should be promoted
to have better knowledge on the sources of water supply, to
rareness these resources, including those from water tables
in areas where water supply is encountering difficulties.

3. COMMERCE AND TECHNICAL SERVICES

To provide in time and enough food, consumables to the
Mountain Area, and to sell all the products from that area,
it is necessary to consolidate the fragmented network of
state-owned trading enterprises (dealing with home-trade,
foreign-trade, technical services ...), to eliminate all
intermediary agencies not necessary for sound development,
to extend the network of general stores, to re-organise the
network of collective co-operatives dealing with goods
distribution following different levels and scope of
development. On the other hand, efforts should be made to
develop a network of agents to sell and buy all commodities
in all villages, settlements, markets and along the sides of
main roads. Ind1viduals, private entrepreneurs should have
licences to carry business in all kinds of commodities that
can be produced legally.

Encouragement should be made to all sectors, either private
or state-owned, to increase the supply of technical services
for improving the production and the living conditions of
the Uplanders, including conditions for cultural,
educational and health care development ... following the
right ways as provided by Law.

4. QUICK EXTENSION OF ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY IN THE MOUNTAIN
AREA.

The main task should be to continue perfecting baseline
surveys in the Mountain Area, to carry out overall
assessment of the natural resources and conditions therein,
and to base upon the data already available to draw
integrated long-term and short-term plans for economic and
social development in the Mountain Area, with emphasis being
laid upon eco-development and environmental protection.

For the short-term, based upon the data and baseline
available, it is necessary to identify the main
organisational development in various industries in specific
areas, the target and areas for which effective investment
can be made, so to make good use of the resources in hand.
Research on and practical application of advanced technology
in land farming, animal husbandry, in agriculture and forest
products processing, especially the technology related to
the cultivation and breeding of tree and animal species that
constitute the main commodities of the Mountain Area, should
be carried out. It is of importance to base upon the
technical centres so far established in the Mountain Area to
develop and intensify the supply of technical services,
especially those related to the introduction of new
promising cultivars and breeds developed from exotics, to
improved seeds and breeds, to pests, diseases and plague
control and to new technology in product processing .... At
the same time, attention should be paid to upgrade the
technical standards of various units dealing with products
harvesting and processing, of various light industry,
cottage industry and handicrafts workshops and factories
meant for the production of consumables and food processing.
The mixed 'basket' of daily food should also be further
diversified and improved.

Various sectors of the economy and industries should
establish research centres that suit to the physical
conditions of various zones (the North West, the North East,
the Western High Plateaux ...) and that meet the real needs
of the local rural population, with emphasis laid upon
compact network, flexible methods of working so to link
research with extension efforts, to quickly introduce new
technology into the production lines. At the same time, the
central laboratories and research institutes should be
strengthened and should develop various research subjects
and programs for improving production in the Mountain Area.
Another main task is to train professionals and technicians
for the Mountain Area, to link training activities with
scientific and applied research for new technical and
technological development therein.

5. FOREIGN ECONOMIC RELATIONS

Besides activities to encourage the production of exports,
efforts should be made to better organise the processing
industries following various scales but always using the
best modern technology capable of producing choice goods for
effort. Better organisation and business management in
foreign trade in provinces and districts bordering the
frontiers, for exchange of goods between interested parties,
with emphasis being laid upon the protection of all
commodities produced locally and suitable measures to
prevent economic undermining, illegal smuggling by dishonest
merchants and state agencies as well, should be a 'must'.
The localities next door to national frontiers should
develop their role of 'bridge-head', acting as intermediary
agencies for business transactions, for goods exportation
and importation, between local and foreign firms following
the terms and conditions as stipulated by law.

Various firms of international economic cooperation should
be developed. Preferential rights and open policies should
be accorded to foreigners so to attract investments from
foreign sources for economic development in various sectors
and industries, including those dealing with agriculture,
forestry, mining activities, products, processing, cottage
industries, handicrafts, infrastructure development, goods
trading and technical services. It is indispensable to apply
flexible forms of investments, ranging from joint ventures
to enterprises with 100 percent equity produced by foreign
firms.

Investments should also be made to develop tourism and other
services related to it in the Mountain Area. For this, it is
necessary to rehabilitate and build up tourism zones and
scenic sites in such areas as Dien Bien Phu, Truong Son, Tam
Dao, Da Lat ... to attract visitors and tourists from other
countries.

II/ IMPLEMENTING ECONOMIC POLICIES FOR MULTI-SECTORAL
DEVELOPMENT, RE-ADJUSTING THE RELATIONSHIPS OF PRODUCTION,
RENEWING THE MANAGERIAL MECHANISMS, AND FULLY LIBERATING ALL
PRODUCTION POTENTIAL IN THE MOUNTAIN AREA.

1. The main tasks will be to restructure the Unions,
Companies, General companies with a view to eliminating all
intermediary links found to be unnecessary; to carry out a
drive to investigate the status of land use by forest
enterprises, state farms and other economic units operating
in the Mountain Area; to identify once again the most
rational scales for land farming. The lands not used by the
above mentioned units for production purposes, now and in
near future, and those used in an inefficient way, should
definitively be taken back and handed over to local
authorities for them to re-allocate these to farmers for
better and more effective use. The land areas under
protection forests and protected forests for rehabilitation,
should be put mainly under the management by local
authorities. All lands allocated to state farms, state-owned
forest enterprises, including those not under effective use
for agriculture and forestry development, should be liable
to land taxes.

To ensure that all lands, orchards, forest stands and other
assets are under the management by competent users, it is
necessary to extend the systems of output rating, land
leases, business bidding in which farmers' households and
workers' and civil servants' families can take part, for
them to carry on stable business and long-term sustainable
land use. It is of importance to enact legislation
recognising their rights in being engaged in output rating
contracts, in the transfer of their right to use the lands
under output rating contracts to their descendants, and to
transfer the products, the capital and other assets invested
on these lands.

Strong emphasis is laid upon a shift of activities in all
state farms and state-owned forest enterprises to the supply
of technical and marketing services, so to meet the
requirements of the producers, the land and forest hill
farming entities operating in the Area and belonging to all
sectors either state or private-owned.

All state-owned enterprises should apply the official
book-keeping systems now being in force in business, land
farming and industries, and do their best to gain profits.
Any economic units now experiencing sustained losses and not
capable of redressing their wrong should shift to other
economic dealings most suitable for them.

Preparatory work should be initiated to transfer some state
farms, forest enterprises to other forms of making business
such as companies by shares of various structures (including
joint ventures with foreign firms) and/or private-owned
companies.

2. With regard to collective farms and enterprises, the main
point is to apply the democratic and voluntary principles
with their real meanings. This is to encourage farmers to
participate into various collective business and
enterpri1ses of various forms and degrees most suitable for
households and/or individuals. Any cooperatives that have
been running properly and efficiently will continue to
operate with a new orientation and at the right scales
following the lines assigned by the Economic Reform,
emphasis being laid upon the extension of the system of
output rating contracts signed with several households.
Cooperatives shall also do their best to promote the supply
of technical and marketing services.

For other cooperatives being less effective in their
business and land farming, meetings should be held to
discuss solutions for changes in either their scope or their
business.

3. Family economy. During these first stages and even
further in future in the Transitional Period, the family
economy is found to be the most suitable form for market
economy development in the Mountain Area, therefore
particular attention should be paid to encourage and help
farmers to develop their own family economy.

With regard to various tribal groups in the Western High
Plateaux, now still living in common in 'long houses', it is
necessary to allocate lands and provide better conditions to
develop the so-called 'garden economy', thus creating
several households that are attached to their settlements,
and accelerating the changes from a 'natural economy' to a
market economy in which individual households play the most
important role.

4. The private-owned sector of the economy operating under
the terms and conditions as provided by law in agriculture,
forestry, cottage industries, commodities trading, technical
services supply... plays an important role in, and
positively contributes to shifting the economy from a
'natural economy' to the market economy in the Mountain
Area.

It is necessary to encourage all private-owned enterprises
and individual entrepreneurs in the Mountain Area and from
the Lowlands, within and without the country, to make
investments for the development of agriculture, forestry,
products processing industries, cottage industries,
handicrafts, commodities trading, services supply,
transportation business, infrastructure building, so to meet
all needs of the people for domestic use and export. There
will be no limitations on either the scope of their
activities and the market outlets, no discriminations of any
sectors being involved in the production of any kinds of
commodities, except for some commodities that can not be
produced and sold by private-owned companies and individuals
as stipulated by law.

It is essential to extend the scope of cooperation, joint
ventures, joint business following flexible procedures
between provinces, cities, economic units of the Deltas and
their counterparts operating in the Mountain Area. These
enterprises have the rights to free transportation of the
goods produced, to tax reductions and/or exemption,
especially so during the first years of their business.

III/ RENEWING ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL POLICIES TO BE APPLIED ON
THE MOUNTAIN AREA

1. First, it is necessary to readjust the policies related
to taxes paid various industries: agriculture, handicrafts,
cottage industries, goods distribution, so to create
incentive for the development of commodities production in
the Mountain Area. The main guidelines will be to accord:
tax exemptions to agricultural products produced in areas
encountering difficulties, to the distribution of some
commodities of first necessity; tax reductions to
agriculture products, and to the trading of some commodities
produced by the cottage industries, handicraftsmen operating
in the rural areas of Mountain Area. The Government will
also increase the rate of collected revenues to be left to
district and village authorities of the Area.

2. Subsidies in terms of technical supplies through pricing
shall be replaced by support prices accorded to goods for
sales. Direct assistance to invalids and vulnerable people
will replace the provision of subsidies through pricing.
Appropriate rates of interest for all credits needed for the
purchase of consumables that require stock-piling for
security and regular supply to the Uplanders, especially
during the seasons of heavy rains and big storms, should be
put in force.

3. It is necessary to encourage the establishment of
networks and centres for trading and technical consultancy
in various towns, cities in the Mountain Area and along the
main roads leading to that Area. Investments are required to
build up and renovate various market places in the Area, so
to erect centres for economic and cultural development and
for business transaction therein. Besides the comodities on
which there is a ban for their production and selling, and
which will be listed and announced by public agencies, all
other commodities can be freely produced, sold, and
exchanged by tribesmen of various groups and businessmen,
between the Mountain Area and the Deltas all over the
country. It is also necessary to extend the trading networks
(including those developed by private-owned enterprises
and/or private entrepreneurs) down to isolated and remote
villages and settlements. For markets along the frontiers,
appropriate measures for national security should be applied
as required by lawq.

4. Living conditions, Education and Training, Cultural
Development, Health care, Social benefits.

First of all, efforts should be made to deal with the
following topics:

a. More investments to build up the network for the
provision of health care to the Uplanders in the Mountain
Area, to secure the supply of the most needed medicines and
vaccines to stop and prevent the spreading of diseases in
the Area.

Intensive training and upgrading of health officers and
right personnel policies should be applied therein, so that
not before long, there will be enough health officers
working in villages or groups of villages therein. This
network when working together with the Red Cross Association
will increase the potential to deal with health problems
even in small villages and/or groups of settlements.

The Government shall work out stipulations to select and
encourage famous workers in traditional medicine to carry on
their activities and train others. It is essential to
promote the processing and use of local drug plants and of
traditional medicines to prevent and cure diseases. Efforts
should also be made to encourage competent health officers
to open drug stores, surgeries in the Mountain Area
following various forms (through resources pooling or
running by individuals).

Policies should be elaborated so to hand out direct
assistance to the staff and people living in the High
Mountain Area, in the cradle or the Revolution, when
encountering difficulties and being obliged to have
treatments in hospitals.

Efforts should be made to gain and have adequate assistance
from the Government, from foreign organisations for the
development of health and educational facilities, for
improving the living conditions of the people living in the
High Mountain Area, along the frontiers, in remote areas and
in former sanctuaries of resistance.

b. Special attention should to paid to the supply of
commodities and services of first necessity to the people
and tribal groups, these are: salt, kerosene for lighting,
medicines, writing paper for school people, other services
related to culture and arts ....

Water supply programmes for domestic and daily use in some
settlements of the High Mountain Area, along the frontiers
and at some Border Warding Stations should be elaborated and
implemented. Efforts should be made so that by 1995 the
needs in water supply for domestic and daily use in those
areas could be met.

c. Efforts to increase the coverage of mass media, through
the use of modern facilities such as radio cassette, video
cassette, video tape, so to improve the routine broadcasts
in the Area, to disseminate knowledge and other information
of actual relevance to the people, meeting their
requirements and traditional needs of upholding and
improving their culture, should be made. The languages to be
used in these media should be the local languages (and
written languages if any).

d. Renewing the policies related to the education training,
upgrading of personnel and the personnel policies to be
applied in the Mountain Area. It is necessary to increase
the investments made for the building of schools and
training courses, for the training of teachers, for
providing enough teaching staff, materials and facilities to
the children and youths in the Mountain Area; to re-organise
the network of primary schools, especially in the communes
of the High Mountain Area, including the voluntary classes
organised in some villages and/or groups of households.
Compulsory primary education (Grade I) should be applied to
all youths with the help of right curricula; free schooling
should be accorded to children of tribal groups and children
of the Lowlanders coming to settle in the Area and
encountering big difficulties. Attention should be paid to
teach the written languages of some tribal groups in
parallel with the teaching of Vietnamese.

For tribal groups having the needs of learning their own
language, conditions should be created for them to do so in
the most convenient and effective way.

It is vital to carry out a review on the whole educational
system so to make it suitable for economic and social
development in the Mountain Area in general and in specific
zones in particular. First, it is essential to extend and
strengthen the network of primary schools for young
tribesmen, to create boarding facilities, 'schools in which
the youths can work and learn at the same time', vocational
centres and preparatory training courses for all hill youths
willing to get educated in Technical Schools and Colleges of
special interest to the Mountain Area. At the same time more
favourable conditions should be made available for these
youths to enter the above-mentioned schools and colleges and
to get adequate scholarships, especially so for all youths
living in the High Mountain Area. Emphasis should be laid
upon the training of local youths, and of children of the
cadres now working therein, willing to return native places
after having completed their training.

Extension of the curricula for short term training of
managerial staff and technicians most suitable to the
standards of production, the traditions of the Area ...,
will be also a 'must'. It is also necessary to re-establish
the special training courses for Mountain Area cadres in the
Party Schools, the Administration Schools, and other schools
created by various public leagues and organisations at the
Central and provincial levels; at same time right policies
and treatments should be accorded to all these trainees.

Personnel policies related to personnel of minority stock,
and to personnel of Lowland origin but now working in the
Mountain Area, especially the personnel now attached to the
High Mountain and remote areas, islands ..., should be
amended and improved.

PART THREE

ORGANISATION NEEDED FOR IMPLEMENTATION.

1. It is necessary to renew the leadership of the Party in
the Mountain Area; to perfect its organisation and increase
the effectiveness of all activities of the Party, so to make
it capable of helping the Central Committee carry out the
necessary research work, the formulation of right policies
and the inspection activities needed for the right
implementation of all policies related to minority people,
to the development of social and economic conditions of the
Area.

It is also necessary to effect changes in the organisation
and methods of working in various public organisations so to
make them all suitable to the actual conditions in the
Mountain Area, with a view to promoting popular movement for
better and effective implementation of various policies of
the Party for development in the Area.

2. To ensure the success in implementing all the policies
mentioned earlier, the Politburo, the Party Secretarial
Board and the Council of Ministers will strengthen the care
staff working in the Mountain Provinces, including
leadership, managerial and technical staff. In the
Politburo, there will be a leader bearing the main
responsibilities of implementing the policies, he will
regularly take note of the progress of all activities for
the implementation of this Decision; the Council of
Ministers will designate one of its Vice-chairmen to direct
all activities in the Mountain Area. Other related sectors
will assign leaders to carry the responsibilities of
execution and technical officers to deal with problems in
the Mountain Area should be selected.

All Mountain Provinces and other provinces having some
districts in the Mountain Area, following their competency
and the scope of their responsibilities, shall designate
members of their People's Committee to be in charge of
various activities related to minority people, to
development in the High Mountain remote areas, and in former
sanctuaries of resistance.

It is vital to apply the principles of 'centralised
democracy' most suitable for the work in various People's
Councils, especially so in localities where many tribal
groups are living, so that the People's Councils can be
regarded as the main authorities having in hand the power of
the people, thus ensuring solidarity among various tribal
groups.

The commune authority should also be strengthened, with
emphasis being laid upon the responsibilities of other lower
administrative levels in various hamlets, villages,
settlements; on the other hand, the role of the heads of the
settlement, local leaders in administration, business
management, social arrangement in local and national
security and defence ... should be emphasised.

3. The Council of Ministers shall work out detailed
instructions and legal procedures following the contents and
spirit of this Decision to start its implementation from the
1st quarter of l990. When issuing detailed instructions, it
is necessary to show out various suitable steps involved,
and effective measures, indicating that the highest possible
efforts are being made. It is necessary to concentrate
efforts on the most important tasks to be carried out
immediately and during the two or three following years.

4. The secretarial Board of the Party shall direct other
Party boards to carry out the monitoring work, to follow all
activities involved, to evaluate and sum up the results and
experience gained, to issue in time further recommendations
for amendment during the process of implementation.

On behalf of the Politburo
General Secretary
Nguyen Van Linh
(Signed)

Distribution to:

- Members of the Central executive Committee.
- Provincial Party Secretaries.
- Party committees of Central Agencies.
- Ministries, Committees and General Departments.
- Archives.

Certified Conformed to the Original
By order of the Secretarial Board
Chief of Personnel
Hong Ha
(Signed)

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