A farm in northern Nam Dinh Province's My Thang Commune, which has implemented hi-tech vegetable planting on 12,000 square metres to earn an annual profit of VND200 million ($8,968). — VNA/VNS Photo Vu Sinh

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — As many as 28 enterprises nationwide have been selected to participate in 31 agricultural projects that apply a hi-tech models with low interest loans, the State Bank of Viet Nam has said.

The amount of money allocated to help these enterprises to develop their models was nearly VND7 trillion (US$339 million), it said.

The programme was carried out under the Government's Resolution No.14, which would as a trial provide loans to enterprises who had agricultural models that ran from production through processing to consumption, and applied high-tech methods to increase production.

The lending rates would be about 1 to 1.5 per cent lower than the normal annual rates. The interest rate would be 6.5 per cent for short-term loans, 9.5 per cent for medium-term loans and 10 per cent for long-term loans.

Enterprises would be eligible for loans of up to 90 per cent of their agricultural production project costs. In cases where they failed to demonstrate enough asset security as required, they could still get a loan based on the bank's control of cash flow.

If the time for implementing the project was between 12 and 18 months, and each stage of production, processing, and consumption was estimated to be less than 12 months, enterprises would be eligible for the loan at this low interest rate if they committed to pay off part of the debt after every stage.

A representative of the State Bank of Viet Nam said that the bank, together with the ministries of agriculture and rural development, and science and technology, had chosen 28 enterprises in 22 cities and provinces to join the programme.

As many as eight banks have committed to give financial support to enterprises totaling more than VND5.6 trillion ($263 million). The two-year trial of the programme will be completed this May.

Explaining the disbursed amount of money of VND7 trillion ($339 million), an increase of VND1.4 trillion ($62.7 million) compared to the initial amount committed to enterprises, the representative said that some enterprises had asked to expand their production during the implementation of the programme. — VNS