At his working session with Phu Tho’s authorities on November 22, PM Dung also asked the province to facilitate the implementation of invested projects, especially those using materials available in the province and local workforce.

Phu Tho should prioritise strategies to push up agricultural production, forestry and fish farming to fully tap its potential to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable development, PM Dung said.

The Government leader insisted that the provincial authorities concentrate on speeding up clearance of land for transport projects which are crucial for the development of both Phu Tho and the northern region as well, including the Hanoi-Lao Cai expressway, and Hanoi-Lao Cai railway.

Home to the Temple of Kings Hung, who were the founders of Vietnam, Phu Tho should work to promote tourism to serve its development, said PM Dung.

Phu Tho is expected to achieve a GDP growth rate of 7.64 percent and its poverty households are likely to drop by 4 percent to 13.2 percent in 2009.

The province aims for a GDP growth rate of 10.5-11 percent in 2010.

The same day, PM Dung attended an inaugural ceremony for the Song Thao cement plant in Ninh Dan commune, Thanh Ba district.

Built in April, 2004, the Song Thao cement plant is capable of producing 1 million tonnes of cement a year.

The plant is the first that has its designing, building, installation and operation process entirely done by Vietnamese experts.