(VOVworld) – A program to promote the role of young people in collective economic development between 2013 and 2017 was launched Tuesday in Hanoi by the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union and the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI).

Nguyen Dac Vinh, the Union’s First Secretary, and Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh sign the deal for the 2013-2017 period. (Photo: VOV)

At a signing ceremony, Nguyen Dac Vinh, the Union’s First Secretary, listed a number of projects conducted by union members with MPI assistance, such as youth joining hands to build new rural areas, youth with traffic culture, a startup village, and bridge construction pilot project. Vinh said these activities have enabled youngsters nationwide to promote their vanguard role and contribute to economic development. He told reporters: "The Youth Union members of localities have gotten closer to the collective economy. They now have the know-how to obtain loans or locate funding to buy machinery for agricultural production and form cooperatives. They have recently gathered in a group to borrow capital and build farms. Though the capital is not huge, the youngsters have developed their own practical models".

Under the program, the Union and the MPI will set out a collective economic development plan in conformance with the law and policies of the Party and State. The plan will be disseminated to Union members at different levels to replicate effective models.