For many reasons, infrastructure investment in the Hon Khoi salt production area, located in 4 communes and wards: Ninh Thuy, Ninh Diem, Ninh Hai and Ninh Tho (Ninh Hoa town) continues to face difficulties. The main reason is that the salt production area is increasingly narrowing.
Khanh Hoa’s salt production area is mainly concentrated in the Hon Khoi area, with an area of about 650 hectares, of which Ninh Diem ward is nearly 400 hectares. The Hon Khoi salt production area has a fragmented infrastructure, a system of seawater intake canals, and rudimentary roads, mainly made of earth. Therefore, the salt production cost of salt farmers is always high. Many times, when the salt grains have crystallized, but there is no infrastructure for preservation and processing, the salt farmers have lost everything. Many people have had to quit their jobs and hang up their fields because salt production is not profitable.
A corner of Hon Khoi salt field
With the goal of developing the salt industry in a sustainable manner, the State has had many policies to support production, including investing in infrastructure projects. Specifically, in 2016, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) approved the Project to Upgrade and Renovate the Infrastructure of Hon Khoi Salt Field. The project has a total investment of nearly 65 billion VND, dredging the main Cau Treo canal system; dredging and solidifying 18 branch canals; building and solidifying a number of bridges and culverts to facilitate the collection of seawater and the transportation and loading of salt by salt workers. However, for many reasons, this project has not yet been implemented.
New project facing difficulties
One of the tasks of the Project on Salt Industry Development for the period 2021-2030 approved by the Prime Minister in 2020 is that the Khanh Hoa salt area will be invested in industrial-scale salt production infrastructure; Hon Khoi salt area is invested to promote the application of science and technology in salt production and processing to improve productivity, quality, and diversify salt products; salt production combined with tourism, resorts, etc.
To specify the Prime Minister’s project, in 2021, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development issued a decision approving the investment policy of the Project to Upgrade and Renovate Infrastructure for Salt Production in the 2021-2025 period in 7 salt fields in 7 provinces, including: Nam Dinh, Thai Binh, Phu Yen, Khanh Hoa, Ninh Thuan, Ben Tre and Bac Lieu. In particular, in Khanh Hoa there is Hon Khoi salt field with an investment area of 355 hectares. This project focuses on upgrading transport infrastructure to ensure salt production and transportation; irrigation infrastructure, including upgrading and renovating water supply and drainage systems, dykes, pumping stations, etc. to ensure salt production.
In early July, the Agricultural Project Management Board (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) issued a document requesting localities, including Khanh Hoa, to review the planning area and land use plan for the period 2021-2030 of the locality, comparing it with the salt field investment policy approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development as mentioned above for the Ministry to consider investing.
According to the report of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, through reviewing Ninh Hoa town and the land use planning to 2030 of the province, the current salt production area to 2021 of Ninh Hoa town is 641ha, the planning to 2030 is reduced to 337ha (rounded). Of the remaining 337ha, the industrial salt production area invested by enterprises is 256ha (Khanh Hoa Salt Joint Stock Company); The remaining area of 81 hectares is the area for manual salt production managed and produced by the 1/5 Cooperative and salt farmers of Ninh Tho commune. Compared to the decision approving the investment in the salt production area in Hon Khoi by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of 355 hectares, the current planning is only more than 80 hectares.
Thus, the salt production area will no longer be as abundant as before. Along with that, the policy of infrastructure investment in the salt area will continue to be studied and considered. Salt workers in the Hon Khoi salt field still hope that the State will soon invest in infrastructure, as a basis to increase the value of salt grains, diversify salt products, especially to realize the orientation of linking salt production with tourism.
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