An Giang aims to become a large-scale rice and seafood hub

Contributing to the One Million Hectares of High-Quality Rice project

Located at the headwaters of the Mekong River, An Giang, formed after its merger with Kien Giang into the new An Giang province, has become the country's largest agricultural production province. The province cultivates about 1.3 million ha of rice each year, with an estimated output of approximately 9 million tons, ranking first nationwide in scale and productivity.

An Giang is defining its strategic direction by developing large-scale, high-tech, emission-reducing agriculture that enhances the added value to become the Mekong Delta's rice and freshwater seafood hub.

According to Mr. Ngo Cong Thuc, Vice Chairman of An Giang Provincial People's Committee, restructuring production along a closed value chain, from raw material areas to processing and consumption, will facilitate traceability, helping products meet the high standards of domestic and export markets. An Giang has completed industrial parks and clusters for processing agricultural products linked to concentrated raw material areas. This effort aims to promote deep processing, enhance added value, and reduce post-harvest losses.

Notably, An Giang has been one of the pioneering localities participating in the "Sustainable Development of One Million Ha of High-Quality, Low-Emission Rice Associated with Green Growth in the Mekong Delta" project for many years. An Giang strives to have more than 351,000 ha of rice under this project by 2030.

The province has implemented 55 emission-reducing rice models covering nearly 2,000 ha, delivering precise results. Specifically, average production costs reduced by VND 4.12 million/hectare, yields increased by 0.78 tons/ha, and profits rose by VND 5–8 million/ha compared to traditional practices. Importantly, the models help reduce emissions by 7.56–8.11 tons of CO₂e/ha.

Despite these positive outcomes, An Giang's rice industry continues to face challenges, including severe impacts of climate change, high input costs, low profits, and uneven technology application. Value chain linkage models remain unsustainable, while efforts to build an emission-reducing rice brand are hindered by the lack of leading enterprises strong enough to drive large-scale exports.

Farmers innovate rice cultivation methods

In Dinh Hoa commune, An Giang province, Thanh Xuan Agricultural Service Cooperative has piloted a high-quality, low-emission rice cultivation model on 50 ha during the summer–autumn crop, with the participation of 11 households. Thanks to applying the technique of sparse sowing at 70 kg/ha, rice yields reached 6.67 tons/ha, 0.31 tons/ha higher than the control field. At the same time, production costs fell by over VND 1.4 million/ha, generating nearly VND 4 million/ha in additional profit.

Mr. Danh Thao, Deputy Director of the Cooperative, said that rice plants grew well with fewer pests and diseases thanks to row sowing, balanced fertilizer application, and organic microbial fertilizers. Fertilizer costs reduced by about VND 1.3 million/ha.

In Chau Thanh commune (An Giang province), farmer Danh Phuong has been practicing VietGAP rice cultivation for more than three years, combining the "3 Reductions, 3 Gains" and "1 Must, 5 Reductions" techniques with an innovative pumping system controlled via smartphone. As a result, costs decline, productivity remains stable, and selling prices to traders are about VND 200/kg higher than the market price.

According to Mr. Phuong, thanks to new science and technology in rice cultivation, the recent crop experienced fewer pests and diseases, less falling during the stormy season, and higher yields than traditional farming practices.

Mr. Tran Thanh Hiep, Deputy Director of the An Giang Department of Agriculture and Environment, said that implementing the One Million Hectares of Rice project has established specialized cultivation zones aligned with production restructuring along the value chain, delivering high efficiency. Currently, the province produces around 100,000 tons of rice meeting SRP, organic, GlobalGAP, and VietGAP standards, with strict residue control, and is gradually shifting to organic production for exports to the EU, U.S., and Japanese markets.

For the 2025–2030 term, An Giang's agricultural sector aims to maintain rice output at over 8 million tons/year, with agro-forestry-fishery growth exceeding 4%/year. The province targets expanding the application of the "1 Must, 5 Reductions" model to over 60% of its cultivated area, while strongly developing high-quality, fragrant rice varieties with international branding.

In addition to rice, An Giang prioritizes the development of freshwater and brackish-water seafood, leveraging its advantage as one of the largest pangasius exporters in the Mekong Delta. The province encourages the formation of cooperatives and enterprises investing in deep-processing technology and building sustainable linkage chains from farming to consumption.

To realize its vision of becoming a large-scale and modern hub for rice and freshwater seafood in the Mekong Delta, An Giang is in great need of enterprises with capacity in finance, technology, and governance to invest in the agricultural sector. Such investment will serve as a key driver for the province to leverage its large-scale agricultural advantages, develop high-value projects, and meet market requirements.

*USD 1 = VND 26,153 (Source: Vietcombank)