Lesson 1: Diverse Potential
(Baonghean) - Our province has 11 mountainous districts and towns. Each locality has different advantages for developing crops and livestock. Historically, the province and localities have utilized government investment and support programs to build economic development models by introducing new plant and animal breeds for cultivation and breeding, aiming to create jobs and stabilize livelihoods for ethnic minorities. However, this potential has yet to be exploited in a way that prioritizes in-depth investment...
(Baonghean) - Our province has 11 mountainous districts and towns. Each locality has different advantages for developing crops and livestock. Historically, the province and localities have utilized government investment and support programs to build economic development models by introducing new plant and animal breeds for cultivation and breeding, aiming to create jobs and stabilize livelihoods for ethnic minorities. However, this potential has yet to be exploited in a way that prioritizes in-depth investment...
The mountainous districts of Nghe An province cover an area of 13,750.1 km2, accounting for 83% of the province's total natural land area, with high mountainous regions making up 58%. The population is nearly 1.2 million people, representing almost 37% of the province's total population. Along the 419 km border, there are 4 border gates connecting trade with Laos and, to the Northeast, Thailand. With 4 main transportation routes connecting the East-West economic corridor and the Ho Chi Minh Highway, trade is very convenient.
The green squash grown by the Hmong people in Tuong Duong is of high quality, but its value is low.
With its vast area, Western Nghe An has abundant land resources, mainly consisting of ferralitic soils such as limestone red soil, yellow-red soil, brown-red soil, basalt soil, etc., which are very suitable for industrial crops, fruit trees, forestry, grass cultivation, providing raw materials for processing industries, and having export value, contributing to poverty reduction.
In addition, there is alluvial soil in the valleys and along the rivers and streams, which makes up a small percentage of the area and is used to grow crops to provide food for the local population. Notably, our mountainous region is located at the intersection of major transportation routes from the North.
Furthermore, each ethnic group has its own customs, lifestyle, and production practices. Therefore, the mountainous regions of our province have favorable conditions for developing a diversified economy with various crops, livestock, and other occupations based on the specific characteristics of each ethnic group.
For many years, thanks to the attention and support of the Party and the State, numerous programs and projects have been implemented to develop the agricultural, forestry, and fisheries sectors in mountainous districts. Many localities have effectively utilized and exploited their potential, achieving high economic and social results, contributing to sustainable poverty reduction. Con Cuong district has developed industrial tea plantations, Bai Phu oranges, and timber forests for many years. Ky Son district focuses on developing Tuyet Shan tea, lac trees, and lilies. Que Phong district recently introduced passion fruit cultivation, yielding high productivity. The districts of Quy Hop, Nghia Dan, Thai Hoa, Tan Ky, Anh Son, and Thanh Chuong have long maintained their strong agricultural products, such as tea, rubber, sugarcane, and oranges.
Many localities have taken advantage of their hilly terrain to develop livestock into high-value commodities: wild boar, black pig, porcupine, goat, chicken, buffalo, and cattle. In addition, these localities have established model farms using new crop and livestock varieties for people to learn from and emulate, resulting in significantly higher economic efficiency compared to native breeds. Clearly, with the government's attention and the diligence of the people, in recent years, the mountainous districts of our province have contributed to the overall economic development of the province by supplying raw materials to agricultural and forestry processing plants. Therefore, the lives of ethnic minorities in many areas have improved significantly. Notable examples include Tan Ky, Nghia Dan, and Thai Hoa town.
Raising fish in cages in the upper reaches of the Lam River is also a potential area for the mountainous region.
However, overall, the mountainous areas of our province still have great potential for developing high-value commercial crops that can only be grown in mountainous regions, but which have yet to be exploited. Each region has different advantages depending on the land, microclimate, and characteristics of each ethnic group. In Ky Son, Tuong Duong, and Que Phong districts, agricultural specialties include taro, green squash, and ginger. Con Cuong, Anh Son, and Tan Ky districts have oranges, tea, and forest resources.
However, for a long time, products such as taro, green squash, ginger, and galangal have been largely grown spontaneously by ethnic minority communities, leading to unstable consumption and complete dependence on traders. Many key officials at the commune level believe that if there is coordination between the government, businesses, and the people, ethnic minority communities will develop the cultivation of ginger, green squash, galangal, and taro.
Because there is a lot of unused farmland and garden land, while growing these crops requires low investment and is suitable for mountainous areas. In some Hmong villages in Tuong Duong district, we saw people harvesting green squash and taro, with squashes weighing 5-8 kg and taro tubers as big as rice bowls, carried back from the fields and piled high from the corners of their houses to the gates.
However, when asked about the economic efficiency, the villagers all shook their heads because the selling price was too low. Most buyers came from the lowlands and cities, driving their cars right into the villages to buy the produce for retail sale or to supply factories that process confectionery and beverages. The ethnic minority people said that pumpkins and taro are mainly grown intercropped with rice in the fields, requiring little investment in care, and can be harvested after a year. It is thought that if they were grown as specialized crops with government involvement, the economic efficiency would certainly be better. Only planting forests for raw materials seems promising, but the lack of a "three-party" linkage means the products are still subject to price manipulation.
This reality has led to a mindset of dependence and reliance among the people. Land is left fallow, and ethnic minorities go into the forest to gather bamboo shoots and exploit non-timber forest products to make a living. Many agricultural extension officers believe that the reason why farmers do not adopt high-yield crop and livestock models is because they are not suitable for their customs and the models are only implemented for too short a time, giving farmers insufficient time to learn the experience.
The obvious problem is that in 1996, our province had a policy to eradicate opium poppy cultivation in the highland districts of Ky Son and Que Phong. Following this, there was a campaign to encourage people to plant fruit trees such as plums, lac trees, taro, green pumpkins, peaches, and persimmons. After many years of planting and caring for them, hundreds of hectares of fruit trees have developed, yielding a relatively large harvest. However, due to inadequate marketing, most of the produce is consumed locally, resulting in low economic efficiency, or even no sales at all. This has led to people in many areas gradually cutting down their fruit orchards. And to this day, deciding what crops will replace those orchards remains a difficult question.
Regarding livestock farming, it has not been exploited in a way that suits the conditions of each region. The western region of Nghe An has advantages in developing livestock and poultry farming. These are hilly areas very suitable for grazing buffalo and cattle. In addition, there are many areas of land used for growing grass to feed livestock. In reality, most ethnic minority people still raise livestock in a free-range manner, resulting in low-quality herds, mainly consisting of local cattle, which are small in weight and have low economic efficiency. Although in recent years many localities have adopted policies to improve the quality of buffalo and cattle herds by crossbreeding, the annual birth rate of crossbred calves and heifers is low, and the percentage of buffalo and cattle that have been crossbred is not high compared to the total herd. Black pigs, black-legged Mong chickens, cage-farmed fish, etc., if produced in large quantities, would certainly have a market, as they are currently considered specialties in the lowlands.
The potential is enormous and diverse, yet it remains impoverished. Potential, of course, doesn't automatically translate into wealth; it requires investment and human ingenuity to transform it into reality. The question then lies in the approach.
Xuan Hoang
