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he district of Dilinh covers a total area 162,000 ha area of fertile basalt land, of which 47,000 ha is agricultural land. Its weather subzone and climate are suitable for industrial crops, especially coffee. Years ago, after researches of the soil condition of the district, the French established plantations of coffee. At the time most of the Vietnamese people in the district worked as employees for those plantations; the others began to cultivate coffee for themselves. Before 1975 Dilinh had a total 750 ha coffee growing area. During the first phase just after the Liberation of South Vietnam, since food was the first demand and concern, the district gave all priorities to food crops. As a result, a great number of coffee trees were cut off to be replaced with food crops and other crops. Some years later, the district's authorities set forth strategic directions : on one hand, food crops must be developed to meet with people's first demand of food and clothing; on the other hand, the advantages of such industrial land must be exploited to help improve and raise people's living conditions as well as to contribute to the whole country's prosperity.

Among industrial crops, coffee occupies a "position" superior to others. The district's authorities have set several strategic directions and measures so as to encourage people to cultivate coffee, such as: proper

permanent settlement and permanent agriculture; building  home-garden models (i.e. Gardens goes with houses). In addition, a staff of agricultural experts was recruited to guide the farmers to coffee-cultivating methods and intensive techniques. The authorities also took various actions to encourage the farmers among ethnic minorities to grow coffee: coffee saplings, seeded and geminated, were to be given to the farmers in remote and isolated areas. The trend of coffee planting has been upwards since 1984. In 1984, the district had a 350 ha coffee-growing area; 600 ha in 1985,1500 ha in 1986. So the total coffee-growing area of the district was expanded. It reached the climax in 1994, "the golden year of coffee", when the price of coffee reached 30,000-40,000VNDong/1kg of coffee beans. Dilinh had a'storming ?growth rate. In some years, the district had a new growing area of 3,000-4,000 ha of coffee. Besides local farmers, people from other parts of the country came to the district to cultivate coffee. Statistics showed that the district attained 23,000 ha of coffee growing area till 1996, and 40,000 ha by now. Once an intensive zone of coffee was estblished, the district set forth strategic directions to cease expanding growing areas (except, for such expansion required for certain projects). The district should concentrate on intensive methods of horticulture step-by-step mechanisation, instead. Together with this, the irrigation system is to be expanded, more fertilizers invested, and advanced science and technology applied. At present, the district has roughly 10,000 mechanized ploughs, tractors, water pumps, and grinders; 200 dams, lakes, and other small irrigation works; 50,000 tons of fertilizer of various types are invested annually.

Obviously, it is encouraging for the district to be an intensive coffee planting zone. However, the district's economic development has proved to be unbalanced For example, it failed to raise the value of processed coffee. The authorities,therefore, wholeheartedly welcome and is willing to create all favorable conditions for any investor who is to invest  in the coffee - processing industry such as drying, polishing,  processing coffee products to satisfy the market's requirements

The district's economy is developing vigorously, but not stably because of the single-crop system,in which coffee is considered superior to tea, mulberry and other crops Some years ago when coffee gained high prices, the social-economic life underwent distinct changes and people all felt encouraged and reassured to do their farming. Then the prices of coffee  fell low(as in 2000) and the farmers got losses or very low profits. They grew so worried and undecided that the preservations of coffee crops turned out to be a problem. No wonder that the event should directly affect the district's socio-economic life.

According to the district's policy the economic-structure is to be based on the parallel development of agri-forestry and service sectors. Actually, the existing structure is unbalanced. Agriculture (mainly coffee cultivation) is developing much faster, while forestry, small-scale industry and service are still developing very sluggishly, creating an unbalanced economic development of the district. According to the strategic directions for 2001-2005, the district still asserts the economic structure which balances agricultural,forestrial, industrial and service sectors.

It is not a simple process to archieve the diversion of the crop structure. It requires patience and time; To diverse the strure of crops does not mean to replace the current number of coffee plants with other crops. On one hand, Dilinh is to find more suitable solutions to crop diversion ; on the other hand, to find measures to raise the coffee value by applying intensive methods to the current system of crops.  

K' BEO

Chairman of  the People's Committe  of Di Linh

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