Mr Le Minh Hoan: A livable countryside needs joy and livelihoods

Beyond concrete roads and meeting new rural development standards, Ca Mau is pursuing a deeper journey: reviving the “soul of the countryside,” preserving cultural memories, and creating truly livable rural communities.

At the forum “Sustainable Rural Development, Livable Countryside,” held as part of the “U Minh Forest Scent 2026” event, the ideas shared by former National Assembly Vice Chairman Le Minh Hoan opened a new development mindset for Vietnam's southernmost province.

Drawing from extensive practical experience, Mr. Le Minh Hoan raised an issue that prompted much reflection among participants: “After traveling on smooth, clean concrete roads, if there are no livelihoods, no laughter, and no preserved memories, then the countryside remains merely a renovated space, not yet a truly livable one.”

According to Mr. Hoan, the urgent task today is not only to change the appearance of rural areas but also to change the development mindset. He believes rural areas should be viewed as a multi-layered “social space,” integrating safe living environments, indigenous cultural spaces and strong community ties.

“Infrastructure may come first, but if we overlook understanding people, behaviors and customs, these projects may look beautiful but lack life,” Mr. Hoan shared.

In response to these concerns, he suggested developing the rural economy through a multi-value model that integrates agriculture with ecotourism, traditional crafts, and cultural heritage via OCOP/OTOP products. According to him, selling a local product also means selling the cultural story, memories and identity of that land.

In particular, Mr. Hoan emphasized a development philosophy grounded in the community's internal strength. Instead of asking only “What is lacking locally?”, people should ask “What do we already have?” to unlock existing potential. For Ca Mau, this could include the pristine darkness of the U Minh forest, the tradition of wild honey harvesting, the rhythm of forest life and the distinctive cultural values of southern Vietnam.

One issue that Mr. Hoan paid special attention to was building a “learning countryside,” where people move away from fragmented, individual production thinking toward a community-oriented mindset of learning, adapting, and developing together.

Responding to the experts’ recommendations, Mr. Le Van Su, Vice Chairman of the Ca Mau Provincial People’s Committee, affirmed that the province would translate these orientations into practical action programs at the grassroots level.

According to Mr. Le Van Su, the province clearly identifies the principle that “Farmers are the core stakeholders, rural areas are the foundation and agriculture is the driving force,” with the ultimate goal being not titles or recognition, but the satisfaction and quality of life of local residents.

Based on this orientation, Ca Mau has outlined five key task groups for the coming period. The focus will be on shifting from an “agricultural production” mindset to a multi-value “agricultural economy”; promoting cultural depth in ecotourism development; strengthening cooperatives as centers linking production and consumption; developing in harmony with nature and adapting to climate change; and reforming governance methods toward “working with the people” instead of “working on behalf of the people.”

According to provincial leaders, the State will play a facilitating role, businesses will serve as market drivers, and people will remain the central actors in the development process. Grassroots officials will serve as facilitators, helping the community tap its internal strength to build learning-oriented, civilized, and culturally rich rural communities.

According to participants, the journey toward building a “livable countryside” is not a race for appearances or titles, but a process of reviving the “soul of the countryside,” preserving cultural memories, and creating sustainable livelihoods for people in their own homeland.