To review the activities implemented in 8 pilot villages and draw on takeaway lessons learned and propose solutions, orientations, and tasks in 2017, on Jan. 10th, 2017, at hotel SAPALY, Lao Cai city, the Office of Lao Cai Happiness Program Management Consultants in coordination with the Office of new Rural Coordination of Lao Cai province organized a seminar on "Summary of Saemaul Undong eight pilot villages, looks back on a year of Lao Cai happiness program".

Presented at the workshop were Mr. Nguyen Huu The - Vice Chairman, Head of the HPLC Program Directing Committee, Mr. Kim Sun Ho - HPCL Program Director, Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan - Director of Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Deputy head of the HPLC Program Directing Committee, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Luan - Deputy Director of the Center for Agricultural policy advisory/Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development - Program consultant, Ms. Ha Thi Khanh Nguyet - President of Women Union of Lao Cai, Mr. Nguyen Quang Binh - head manager of ODA projects in Lao Cai province, together with the representative bodies of concerned departments, representatives of Simacai district leaders, Bac Ha and Muong Khuong, representatives of the beneficiary communes of the program, and especially the development board and the advanced farmer models in 8 villages participating in the pilot model of the Korea new village.

Mr. Nguyen Huu The - Vice Chairman, Head of the HPLC Program Directing Committee, speaking at the seminar

At the conference, delegates had heard representatives of DARD, WomenUnion, the Management Board of ODA project summarize report, experience and propose solutions from generate income operating activities, investment construction of infrastructure and environment, social activities, and credit that was implemented in the past year. The participants also listened to the reports directly from the developer and the role models in 8 pilot villages about the results, evaluation, suggestions and lessons learned, on this basis, the whole workshop jointly discussed and proposeed orientations and measures to effectively implement the 2017 Rural development plan.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Luan - Deputy Director of the Center for Agricultural Policy Consulting, spoke at the seminar

Speaking at the workshop, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Luan represent the consultant program highly appreciated the results achieved in 8 pilot villages in both appearance and the significant development of the material life, socially, and emotionally of the people in the village, which greatly contributed to the rural development in association with the national program to build NTM. These activities have shown the potential and opportunities for the application in NTM construction and proposed that Lao Cai province needs to develop a direction to replicate the model to the whole province in order to maximize internal resources in NTM construction of the village. Along with that, he also proposed to consider extending the program to create the typical model of rural development, bring the Undong Saemaul model to became one of the important directions in the construction of Vietnam's current NTM program.

Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan - Director of Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in Lao Cai, Deputy Chief PSC of HPLC Program, spoke at the seminar

In summarizing the workshop, Mr. Nguyen Huu The, Vice Chairman of Lao Cai province extend the most sincere thanks to the Government of South Korea and specifically Mr. Kim Sun-ho for supporting Lao Cai province Happiness program implementation, and appreciate the efforts of all levels, branches and localities of the province. At the same time, he also suggested the villages need to identify key tasks, further promote the spirit of self-reliance, unity, cooperation, based on the advantages of each village, proactive, dynamic and innovative to create new breakthroughs in the development of rural villages towards becoming civilized and wealthy villages. In particular, support and promote the role of the authorities, associations, organizations and good work of staff, especially leading officials in the implementation of the HPCL program's next phase.

Province leaders and program awarded certificates of merit and prizes for villages

The workshop also praised, rewarded the village collective, village development committee, advanced models in the activities of Lao Cai Happiness Program 2016, according to which, the Nam Mon village, Na Lang, Sang Man Than have been receiving excellent reviews and awards $US 20,000 from the program to continue to invest in rural development activities; it is a source of great encouragement and also the create movement between villages to perform more success not only in the subcomponent of eight villages but also the 2017 Lao Cai Happiness Program in general.