Dr Phan Minh Nguyet: Building Steam for Hanoi Agriculture

He was born in 1962, the Year of Tiger, he seems to have strength and courage of tiger - the lord of jungle, and his leadership of the company is quite favourable. He is believed to be born to be the leader by his employees. But, in our viewpoint, he is full of energy and spirit to do his work. When he is determined to do anything, he will do it with his own best.

 

He was born into a revolutionary family in a poor village in Quang Thach commune, Quang Trach district, Quang Binh province. Sunshine, wind, the aridity and poverty always deal on this poor land and poverty deeply engraved into his childhood. In 1980, he passed the university entrance exam and sent to former Soviet Union to study. After graduation, he returned the country and assigned to work at Division 304, Army Corps 2. In 1991, due to health reasons, he decided to resign and found a new job for a living. From 1998 to 2004, he was the director of Hanoi Organic Vegetables and Fruit Plant; the deputy director and then director of Hanoi Organic Vegetables and Fruit Company. In 2005, he was named the director of Hanoi Seedling Company. In December 2005, the Hanoi Seedling Company merged with five other companies to form Hanoi Agriculture Investment and Development Company (HADICO). He was appointed the Chairman and CEO.

 

He said many people are unwilling to return to the hometown where poverty delivers on them but he think it is not right. For him, he always tries his best to find the ways to help farmers to escape poverty by adopting new farming practices, varieties or stocks to increase incomes on their estates. And, agriculture is now his living passion. But, his chairmanship and directorship are also stressful because merged companies were long loss-making companies.

 

As the Chairman and CEO of HADICO since 2005, Dr Phan Minh Nguyet and the company’s management successfully worked out the best business strategies for the company. Consequently, the company has made a lot of breakthroughs in production and business activities.

 

Dr Nguyet emphasised “We have to do high-tech farming right now to create uniform, high-quality products. We must define our strategies for science and technology and have intensive investment policies, etc.”

 

And concerns...

With its achievements and contributions, HADICO has been honoured a lot of noble awards and titles from the State and prestigious agencies like First-grade Labour Order from the State President, the Emulation Flag for Outperforming Enterprises from the Hanoi People’s Committee (1997 and 2004). Dr Phan Minh Nguyet has also been decorated a lot of awards and titles like Hanoi Emulation Soldier in 2006, Bach Thai Buoi Award and 21st Century Vietnam Businessman Award in 2007, Golden Entrepreneur and Enterprise Award 2007, Agricultural Creative Idea title in 2007, and Successful Entrepreneur 2008 and Outstanding Entrepreneur 2010.

Despite continued economic slowdown in the first nine months of 2013, HADICO still achieved good business results. The firm supplied the market with 1,511 tonnes of vegetables, 1,366 tonnes of fruits, 2,668 tonnes of rice, 366 tonnes of seafood, 4,247 tonnes of livestock meat, 1,550 tonnes of tea, and 135 tonnes of pork. HADICO also supplied plants and livestock like 8.9 tonnes of baby vegetables, 13 million flower branches, 12,000 fruit trees, 40 tonnes of baby fish, and 205,000 chicken heads. Besides, HADICO catered 3,000 tonnes of agricultural products and foods, 1,259 tonnes of fertilisers, and thousands of tonnes of construction materials such as steel and cement. He said although results were still modest, with strong determination and right direction, HADICO will certainly step forward and contribute to Hanoi agriculture.

 

However, he could not conceal his concerns that Vietnam agricultural production was small-scaled, fragmented, lack of linkage and coordination. Farmers are unfamiliar with commercial farming. Infrastructure systems are not enough for long-term professional production methods. He thought that the most important task now is to create high-quality rice and special agricultural products with high value.

 

His thoughts and preoccupations are surely hot topics on professional forums. Without agricultural expertise, we have no idea but we admire him for what he has done for Hanoi agriculture in the past 20 years.