State farms in North Vietnam from 1955 to 1975

planned, centralized, and state-subsidized farms are fully subsidized by the State and operate under administrative orders. The State implements a "subsidized" regime for farms: subsidized through capital allocation, subsidized in purchasing final products, subsidized through prices... A subsidized, planned, centralized economy in which the State controls all production factors, from input materials to consumption and distribution of output products. The State assigns planning targets, on that basis, allocates capital and production materials to state-owned farms. State-owned farms hand over their products to the State. If there are losses, the State compensates; if there are profits, the State collects. The relationship between the State and state-owned farms is simplified into an administrative relationship of allocation and handover.

NTQD is an economic unit, subject to the impact and regulation of economic laws and market factors, but the State "strongly intervenes" by administrative orders. The Ministry of Agriculture plans that this farm grows coffee, so that farm grows coffee. That farm grows tea, so that farm grows tea. The market is the decisive factor in production, but in the centralized, bureaucratic, subsidized economic mechanism, the market factor has been completely eliminated.

State-owned enterprises organize production entirely according to the State-assigned plan targets, so the assessment of production and business results is based on whether the State-owned enterprises have fulfilled the State's production plan or not, not on the basis of actual business accounting. With such an economic management mechanism, every year, State-owned enterprises are assessed as having fulfilled or exceeded the State plan, but in fact, they are making losses if the accounting is correct and complete. State-owned enterprises often have a situation where if they do not meet their targets, they "adjust their plans". Therefore, the situation of "fake profit, real loss" is very common among State-owned enterprises.

In this economy, the State management agency replaces the production and business management function of the state-owned enterprises. The state-owned enterprises are both constrained because they do not have autonomy and rely on their superiors because they are not bound to take responsibility for the production results. That is, responsibility and benefits are separated. Both the state-owned enterprises and workers (producers) have little to do with the responsibility for the final product if they do not do well and also have little benefit from the final product if the product quality is good. Because the State bears the loss, but the State enjoys the profit. Workers still receive their full monthly salary according to the prescribed salary scale. The state subsidizes and supplies input materials and consumes and distributes output products. The above economic mechanism causes the management apparatus to lose its autonomy, work passively, ineffectively and

The producers themselves are not interested in the final production results. That characteristic makes the state-owned enterprises gradually lose their initiative in production and business, creating a mentality of "dependence" and "waiting" on the State; at the same time, it also eliminates the autonomy, dynamism and competitiveness of each farm.

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State-owned enterprises are given priority for investment by the State, and have their own management, financial and labor regimes. State-owned enterprises enclose themselves according to the "planned" administrative boundaries set by the State. Regarding management, the State guides development, investment and product collection. State-owned enterprises must be reviewed and decided by the State. Regarding production organization, what crops to grow and what animals to raise, the State "plans" for each farm. This also separates the relationship between economic sectors, even conflicts with each other (state-owned and non-state-owned economic sectors, in agriculture, between state-owned enterprises and cooperatives, individual and household economies).

NTQD is one of the areas that most clearly reflects the centralized and subsidized management mechanism of the State. The higher the form of socialist ownership, the more it is dominated by the centralized and subsidized management regime. In the agricultural economy, the highest is for the state-owned economic sector (NTQD), followed by the collective economy (HTX), and the family economy of cooperative members. This also partly explains why NTQD is more difficult to "break the barrier" than cooperatives 68 .

It can be said that the subsidized and planned economy soon revealed many limitations and shortcomings, but they were not really severe and did not basically meet the requirements and revolutionary tasks of wartime. However, after 1975, when the country was unified and jointly carried out the task of economic development, the subsidized and planned economy was no longer suitable. Maintaining the subsidized and planned economy for too long caused the country to fall into stagnation and crisis. That was also the reason why, in 1986, the Party and State of Vietnam had to carry out the Renovation; at the same time, affirming the correctness of the Renovation process.

4.4. Some experiences

During its establishment and operation, NTQD has made many great contributions to socio-economic development; at the same time, it has revealed many limitations and weaknesses. Those successes and failures have left many experiences for socio-economic development in the current period. Some of the experiences can be mentioned below:

In the 60s of the 20th century, there were typical "fence-breaking" cooperatives in Vinh Phuc.

Firstly, in order for NTQD to operate effectively and meet the requirements of revolutionary tasks, it is necessary to innovate the management mechanism to motivate workers.

The 20 years (1955-1975) of construction and operation of NTQD during the period when Northern Vietnam implemented the planning, centralization, bureaucracy and subsidy mechanism soon revealed many limitations and weaknesses ( analyzed in sections 4.3.1 and 4.3.2 ). The planning, centralization and subsidy mechanism dominated all activities of NTQD, failed to promote the autonomy of the management apparatus, and failed to arouse the motivation of workers in the farm. This led to a situation of ineffective production and business, with losses lasting for 20 years (1955-1975).

From the reality of inefficient production and business, and prolonged losses of NTQD for 20 years (1955-1975), it can be affirmed that: The Party and State of Vietnam must soon carry out Renovation, resolutely abolish the planning, centralization, bureaucracy, and subsidy mechanism. Especially after 1975, the whole country was independent, unified, and focused on the task of economic development, no longer in wartime, so the planning, centralization, bureaucracy, and subsidy mechanism is no longer suitable for the revolutionary task in the new situation. For NTQD, the Party and State need to innovate the management mechanism to motivate workers. NTQD needs to soon carry out reorganization and renovation.

to improve the operational efficiency of the NTQDs in the new historical context 69 .

Second, NTQD needs to be organized in a streamlined, compact and efficient manner.

During the period 1965-1975, due to the impact of the destructive war, the management structure of NTQD changed with more management levels and more dispersion than in the period 1955-1965. Since 1965, the management organization of NTQD has become more cumbersome, with many intermediate levels. In each farm, the management apparatus is also divided into many departments/offices, many teams, and groups. The labor force participating in management

69 After 20 years (1955-1975) of construction in the North, since 1976, NTQD has been built in all provinces and cities in the South, expanding nationwide. In the new situation, the NTQD economic model has increasingly revealed its shortcomings, limitations, weaknesses and inefficiencies in production, business and management. The Party and the State have issued many policies to innovate the organization and management of farms: Resolution No. 217/HDBT dated January 14, 1987 of the Council of Ministers on innovation of the management mechanism of state-owned enterprises; Decree No. 169/HDBT dated January 14, 1988 of the Council of Ministers on the economic management mechanism of state-owned agricultural production establishments; Decree No. 122/CP dated March 2, 1993 on reorganizing and innovating the management mechanism of state-owned agricultural enterprises; Decree No. 01/CP dated January 4, 1995 on land use contracting for agricultural, forestry and aquaculture production purposes in State-owned enterprises... From 2000 to present, the State has continued to have many innovative policies on the organization and management of state-owned farms such as: Resolution No. 28-NQ/TW dated June 16, 2003 of the Politburo " On continuing to arrange, innovate and develop state-owned farms and forestry farms "; followed by Resolution No. 30-NQ/TW dated March 12, 2014 of the Politburo " On continuing to arrange, innovate and develop, improve the operational efficiency of agricultural and forestry companies" . From 1986 to present, the NTQD model has changed a lot: Some NTQD have converted to new forms of operation, establishing agricultural companies. From the initial NTQD model, it was transformed into enterprises in the following forms: State-owned one-member limited liability company on agriculture, agricultural joint stock company, and agricultural joint venture company.

and indirect labor is still large. The limitation of this management structure is that it leads to overlap and waste in management while still being ineffective.

If the organizational structure is decentralized and divided, it is suitable in wartime conditions to create flexibility. After 1975, when the country returned to peace, NTQD needed to reorganize the management apparatus in a streamlined, compact and effective manner. In each farm, the management apparatus needs to be organized centrally and uniformly.

Third, to create enthusiasm in production, NTQD needs to link production with the economic interests of each worker.

One of the limitations in labor management of the NTQDs in the period of 1955-1975 was that it did not really create enthusiasm and motivation for the workers. There was a reality that existed for 20 years (1955-1975) in NTQDs that the good workers and the bad workers enjoyed the same results of their labor, and production was not linked to the economic interests of the workers. Farm workers only needed enough "work points" to complete the job without having to be responsible for the final labor product. Therefore, farm workers developed a mentality of working "to cope", only caring about the quantity of products and paying little attention to the quality of the products.

The reality of 20 years (1955-1975) of labor management organization of the State-owned enterprises shows that the State-owned enterprises should not equate the labor results of the workers; they should manage workers according to the quality of the final product, not just manage workers according to working time. To encourage and motivate workers, the State-owned enterprises need to link production with the economic benefits of each worker, and attach responsibility for the final product to each worker. Those who do well must enjoy higher labor results than those who do not. Those who work a lot must enjoy higher labor results than those who work less. Only then will workers be motivated to enthusiastically produce and constantly strive to improve their professional qualifications. When production is linked with economic benefits to each worker, then the workers themselves will strive to create more quality products without having to focus on administrative measures to manage workers' working time.

Fourth, regarding agricultural product processing, to improve the quality of agricultural products, NTQD needs to pay more attention and invest more in agricultural product processing.

Processing plays a very important role in the production process. Through processing, the quality and value of agricultural products increase many times. In 20

In the years (1955-1975) of formation and construction, NTQD also paid attention to agricultural product processing. Many processing factories were built. However, agricultural product processing has not really received proper attention and investment. It can be said that agricultural product processing is still one of the weakest stages of NTQD in the years 1955-1975. Agricultural product processing is still lacking and weak compared to the agricultural product resources that NTQD produces every year. NTQD has only stopped at building small processing factories, and the number of factories is also very small. NTQD seriously lacks large-scale agricultural product processing factories with modern technology. Moreover, NTQD's processed products in the 20 years (1955-1975) were very simple and only in the form of preliminary processing (dried) and not refined products. Therefore, the quality of agricultural products has decreased, and the price of agricultural products is not high. In particular, the value of agricultural products is significantly reduced.

The experiences in production and business of NTQD in the period of 1955-1975 have shown that it is necessary to pay more attention and invest more in agricultural product processing. Agricultural product processing needs to be placed in the right position, which can be considered one of the key stages in the production process of NTQD. Only then can NTQD increase the value of the agricultural products that NTQD produces.

Fifth, solve well the output for products of NTQD.

Solving the problem of output for products is one of the decisive factors for the success of a production unit's production and business activities. However, during the subsidy period from 1955 to 1986, the products of the State-owned enterprises were all owned by the State, mobilized and distributed by the State. As analyzed above about product distribution (in section 4.1.3.) , the products of the State-owned enterprises were all consumed by the State. The prices of agricultural products of the State-owned enterprises were also regulated by the State. The problem of solving the output for the products of the State-owned enterprises depended entirely on the State. During the period from 1955 to 1975, most of the State-owned enterprises did not pay attention to the problem of output for the products. This made the production and business efficiency of the farms low, and at the same time limited the dynamism and capacity of the State-owned enterprises. This was also one of the reasons why the State-owned enterprises often suffered prolonged losses.

From the experience in production and business of NTQD in the period of 1955-1975 in particular, as well as throughout the subsidy period in general, it can be seen that solving the output for agricultural products must be one of the issues that need to be given top priority. Along with solving the problem of "what to plant? what to raise?", NTQD needs to solve well the problem of "how to consume products?" It can be said that solving well the output problem for

Agricultural products are the "key" to help NTQD, as well as agricultural enterprises, produce and do business effectively.

Chapter 4 Summary

The birth of the NTQD strongly impacted the economy, politics, society and national defense and security of the Northern Socialist Republic of Vietnam in the period of 1955-1975. It can be said that NTQD contributed to changing the face of the countryside in the mountainous provinces, breathing a new wind, a new vitality into the cultural and social life in remote, isolated areas, and areas of ethnic minorities. The population became more crowded, more bustling, the infrastructure was more spacious, from barren land to rich agricultural areas, towns were born one after another... NTQD contributed to the formation of large-scale specialized areas, creating a comprehensive economic zone in the rural areas of the mountainous provinces.

However, born in the period of centralized planning, bureaucracy, and subsidies, NTQD has all the characteristics of a planned economy, with both advantages and limitations. The advantage is that NTQD is prioritized for investment by the State, and is fully subsidized. The lives of all cadres, workers, and employees are taken care of by the State, with places to eat, stay, and health care and educational opportunities... But the limitation of a planned, centralized economy is that the State replaces the regulatory role of the market, implementing economic management by administrative orders. This is also one of many other reasons leading to the situation of ineffective production and business, and continuous losses of NTQD. This is also the biggest weakness of NTQD during the 20 years (1955-1975).

It can be said that, at each certain historical period, the success or failure of NTQD leaves many valuable experiences for the development of NTQD in the following periods and for the socio-economic development of the country.

CONCLUDE

1. State-owned farms were established to meet the socio-economic development requirements of the North and the country after 1955. After peace was restored, the North had the task of restoring and developing the post-war socio-economy. State-owned farms - a post-war economic model - were established, on the one hand to solve the consequences left by the war, on the other hand to mobilize a large labor force to spread throughout the provinces/cities of the North to gradually restore and develop the economy, contributing to the cause of building socialism in the North.

Considering the time and historical context of the North after 1955, from the perspective of the researcher, the Party and State's policy on building state-owned farms was creative and timely. After 1955, the North had to solve employment and stabilize the lives of 172,046 cadres, soldiers and people from the South who gathered in the North; about 30,000 soldiers transferred to other sectors and thousands of surplus workers in the delta provinces. From the reality of the North after 1955, the Party and State organized this labor force to reclaim land, build state-owned farms, and develop the socio-economy. The establishment of state-owned farms not only stemmed from the need to restore and develop the socio-economy but also to recruit, solve employment and stabilize the lives of tens of thousands of workers in the North. It was an economic, political and social success.

Furthermore, the emergence of state-owned farms not only stemmed from the need for economic development but also from the need for national defense and security, that is, linking economic development with national defense. After the Geneva Agreement (July 1954), the country was divided into two regions, the South and the North. The task of liberating the South and unifying the country was not yet completed; the North, although liberated, could be invaded by the US imperialists at any time. Therefore, national defense was always highly valued. Transferring a large military force to production tasks was to implement the viewpoint of the Party and State of Vietnam on economic development associated with national defense. The emergence of state-owned farms was not only an economic model but also a post-war national defense model. When the US imperialists escalated the war to the North, state-owned farms made great contributions to national defense and security. Economic development combined with national defense protection is still a valuable and practical lesson.

2. Building state-owned farms is closely linked to land reclamation and construction of new economic zones . As analyzed above, new economic zones under the socialist regime are "new territorial residential areas" and "social units". Building state-owned farms is not only for economic development but also to carry out socio-political tasks. Therefore, building state-owned farms means building infrastructure and social welfare works in mountainous rural areas. State-owned farms play the role of the main economic unit of the new economic zones; at the same time, they are the basis for the migration policy, sending lowland people to reclaim land and develop the mountainous economy of the Party and State in the 1960s of the 20th century. It can be said that building state-owned farms in the North in the period of 1955-1975 had many political and social meanings and tasks, in addition to the task of economic development.

3. Despite many limitations and weaknesses, especially inefficient production and business, state-owned farms have many challenges in terms of economy, politics, culture-society, national defense-security . It cannot be denied that: In terms of economy, state-owned farms operate inefficiently and suffer losses for a long time. During 20 years (1955-1975), state-owned farms often failed to fulfill the State's assigned planning targets and failed to pay the budget. Every year, the State still compensates for losses for state-owned farms. The question is: Why are state-owned farms prioritized for investment by the State: in terms of capital, science and technology, facilities, human resources, seeds, fertilizers, etc., but state-owned farms still produce and do business inefficiently and suffer losses, even worse than other economic sectors that receive less investment? There are many reasons such as: Being mechanically influenced by the NTQD model in the Soviet Union and the socialist countries in Eastern Europe; due to difficulties from a low starting point, the process of building the farm had to face two destructive wars of American imperialism; because the Party and the State in general, and the farm staff in particular, did not have much experience in leading economic development, because the planning, centralized, subsidized management mechanism lasted for a long time and soon revealed its limitations. In which, the subjective reason was that the planning, centralized, subsidized management mechanism dominated the operations of the state-owned farm. This was also the general situation of the Vietnamese economy during the period.

State farms in North Vietnam from 1955 to 1975 - 22

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