Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong (Photo: VNA)– The 13th National Party Congress needs to be well
prepared and organised in order to bring the country to a new development
period, Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong has said.
In
an article published on August 31, the top leader emphasised the significance
of National Party Congresses over the past nine decades, as from the birth of
the Communist Party of Vietnam on February 3, 1930.
The
13th National Party Congress takes place in the context of the rapid, complex
and unexpected developments of the global and regional situation, and various advantages
and opportunities as well as difficulties and challenges being generated for
the country.
With
the motto of solidarity, democracy, discipline, innovation and development, the
Congress will review the implementation of the resolution adopted at the 12th National
Party Congress, 35 years of the “Doi moi” (Renewal) cause, the 30-year
implementation of the 1991 Platform, and the 10-year realisation of the Platform
(revised and supplemented in 2011) and the socio-economic development strategy
for the 2011-2020 period.
It
is also scheduled to put forth orientations and tasks for 2021-2026, along with
targets and orientations to 2030 when the Party celebrates its centennial
anniversary, with a national development vision towards 2045 – the year marking
the 100th founding anniversary of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, now the
Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Draft
documents to be submitted to the 13th National Party Congress have been
prepared thoroughly and scientifically, with the principle of combining theory
and reality, consistence and renovation, and inheritance and development, and on
the basis of maximising democracy, acquiring opinions of scientists, officials,
Party members, and people, consulting wholehearted and responsible proposals, and
promoting brainpower of the entire Party, people and army.
The
documents have featured viewpoints, guidelines and major orientations, demonstrating
the strategic vision and mindset of the Party, the nation’ aspiration for
development, and the political resolve of the entire Party, people and army in
building and defending the Socialist Republic of Vietnam with rich people, and
strong, democratic, equal, and civilised nation. Party congresses at levels the
past time had in-depth discussions on all of the documents.
Looking back at the past tenure, the Party General Secretary and State
President said the entire Party, people and army have carried forward solidarity,
mettle and brainpower, and overcome difficulties and challenges to successfully
complete major targets and tasks, and gain significant achievements. They
country has continued to develop rapidly and quite comprehensively, with positive
changes and many hallmarks.
According
to the top leader, despite the global economic and trade downturn, and the
severe crisis due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam has remained
its growth rate of about 6 percent, becoming one of the fastest growing economies
in region and the world.
He
also spoke of social stability and people’s improved living standards, as
reflected through the rate of poor households dropping from 58 percent in 1993
to 9.88 percent in 2016 and below 3 percent in 2020.
The
building and rectification of the Party and political system has received due
attention, and has been carried out in all fronts, from politics to ideology,
morality, organisation and personnel work, creating noted hallmarks.
The
fight against corruption, wastefulness and other bad deeds has also made
progress through drastic measures. Multiple economic and corrupt cases,
especially major and serious ones, have been detected, investigated, prosecuted
and handled strictly, with no prohibited zones and no exceptions, which have
been lauded and supported by officials, Party members and people.
External
affairs and international integration have been stepped up extensively and
intensively, contributing to consolidating the peaceful and stable environment
for development, the top leader said.
Vietnam
has resolutely and persistently preserved its independence, sovereignty, sovereign
right, unity, territorial integrity and other strategic interests. The
country’s prestige and position in the international arena has been
continuously improved.
Notably,
in 2020, Vietnam has basically contained and prevented the spread of the
COVID-19 pandemic, gradually restored production and business, and made all-out
efforts to complete socio-economic development tasks for 2020 and the 2016-2020
period.
The
country has become a bright spot in the fight against the pandemic, and its
efforts in this regard have been acknowledged and praised by the international
community, contributing to raising public trust in the Party, State and socialism.
There are both objective and subjective reasons behind the achievements Vietnam
has recorded over the past five years, with the most important the sound
leadership and management of the Party Central Committee, the Politburo, the
Secretariat, and all-level Party committees in implementing the resolution
adopted at the 12th National Party Congress.
Vietnam
now has the best-ever potential, position and prestige in the international
arena. The country has emerged to become a nation of nearly 100 million people with
the middle-income status. It has set up relations with most of countries in the
world, joined almost international organisations, and become a trust-worthy and
responsible partner of the international community.
This has proven that Vietnam’s development path is sound and suitable with the
situation at home as well as the development trend of the era, and that the
Party’s guidelines are sound and creative.
The
sound Party leadership is the leading decisive factor for victories of the
Vietnamese revolution, and the Party’s Platform continues to serve as the
ideological and theoretical flag leading the nation in the reform process, and
the foundation for the Party to continue completing its guidelines on national
construction and defence in the new period.
The
leader warned of the complex, rapid and unexpected regional and international
situation, along with the crisis in various spheres, including health care,
economy, society and governance administration, caused by COVID-19.
Strategic
and economic competitions and trade wars are predicted to get tense, he said.
Besides,
the Fourth Industrial Revolution will create breakthroughs across fields, and generate
both opportunities and challenges to all countries.
Meanwhile,
in Southeast Asia, security and sovereignty disputes in the East Sea are
forecast to continue to develop complicatedly, he pointed out.
Regarding difficulties and challenges, he stressed that
economic growth has yet to be match potential as after the economy continually
expanded at a fast pace in the first four years of the tenure, growth has
slowed down strongly in 2020, maybe to a rate of 3 percent. Besides, growth
quality remains low and is facing numerous negative impacts of the COVID-19
pandemic.
Besides, the State economic sector, especially
State-owned enterprises, still performs poorly while the domestic private
sector and the foreign invested one have developed fast but yet in a truly
sustainable manner.
Facing those difficulties and shortcomings, the
entire Party, people and political system must show high resolve and exert
every effort to promote reforms, the leader noted.
He also highlighted the Party, people and army’s
persistence in and creative application and development of the Marxism-Leninism
and late President Ho Chi Minh’s ideology; persistence in the goals of national
independence and socialism; and persistence in the Party’s reform policy so as
to develop and safeguard the socialist Vietnam.
In his article, the Party General Secretary and
State President noted the overall strategic thought on the country’s
development for the time ahead, which is fast and sustainable development,
socio-economic development being the centre, Party building being the key,
developing culture as the society’s spiritual foundation, and ensuring
defence-security being a crucial and regular task.
The momentum and resources for national
development in the new period lie in strongly inspiring patriotism and
self-reliance, along with capitalising on the combined strength of the whole
political system, culture and people of Vietnam, according to him.
The political report to be submitted to the
coming congress will specify targets towards important development milestones
of Vietnam: By 2025, Vietnam will become a developing country with
modernity-oriented industry and surpass the lower-middle income level. By 2030,
when the Party marks its centenary, Vietnam will be a developing nation with modern
industry and high income. By 2045, when the country celebrates the 100th
founding anniversary, it will become a developed one with high income.
The leader said the overall and detailed targets
to be set up at the congress will serve as an extremely important basis for
determining orientations, tasks and solutions in national development and
safeguarding.
The detailed targets include comprehensively and
synchronously perfecting the socialist-oriented market economy; building and
fine-tuning regulations and policies to effectively and harmoniously resolve
relations among the State, the market and the society; strongly reforming the
growth model, restructuring the economy, stepping up industrialisation and
modernisation, and improving growth quality, labour productivity and
competitiveness of the economy; making breakthroughs in developing modern and
synchronous infrastructure so as to provide a foundation for bolstering the
development of new sectors and areas, especially digital economy, digital society
and digital government; building strong industry; developing mass production agriculture
that applies high technology; and strongly developing a service sector based on
digital economy and modern scientific-technological advances.
Additionally, it is necessary to guarantee
social progress and equality while ensuring the sustainability in population
and development policies, and in social policies, particularly those related to
social welfare, social security and human security.
In external activities, Vietnam needs to be
proactive and active to integrate into the international community in a
comprehensive and intensive manner; resolutely and persistently safeguard the
country’s independence, sovereignty, sovereign rights as well as national unity
and integrity; and safeguard the Party, State, people and the socialist regime.
In the article, the top leader also underlined
the target of building regular, elite and gradually moderised revolutionary
armed forces.
He also emphasised the task of enhancing the
building and rectification of the Party, the State and the whole political
system so as to have an incorruptible, strong, lean, effective and efficient
apparatus; ramping up the protection of the Party’s ideological basis; and
resolutely and persistently fighting against corruption, wastefulness and
negative phenomena by showing stronger resolve and taking more drastic and
effective actions.
Concluding his article, Party General Secretary
and State President Trong called on the entire Party, people and army to be
unanimous and join efforts to ensure good preparations for and organisation of
the 13th National Party Congress, thereby leading the country to a new period
of development towards “rich people and a strong, democratic, equal and
civilised country” and realisation of President Ho Chi Minh and the whole
nation’s aspirations./.