Lesson 1: The pioneers

(Baonghean) -Nearly 30 years ago, with their youth and aspiration to conquer new lands, youth volunteers turned barren hills and wild forests into new economic zones full of potential.

The birth of the Youth Volunteer Force - Construction and Engineering Forces has a great influence in promoting and spreading economic development, poverty reduction, job creation for young workers; creating stability in national defense and security, building cultural life, and protecting forests in difficult and border areas. However, after completing the mission of pioneers, the Youth Volunteer Force - Construction and Engineering Forces are facing the need to transform and rearrange in appropriate directions.

The Youth Volunteer Force - Construction and Development Team 1 was established in 1986, with its "headquarters" located in Long Son commune (Anh Son). This is the first pilot model of Nghe An Youth Volunteer Force in the period when the country began to innovate and is considered the "big brother" of the Youth Volunteer Force - Construction and Development force. Taking us on a tour of the fertile economic zone with winding tea hills, recalling the first difficult days of reclaiming and opening up land in the sacred forest and poisonous water, Mr. Pham Van Loan - the Team Leader sadly shared: "On the first day of establishment, the team had 22 team members with an area of ​​500 hectares of land in the area of ​​3 communes Long Son, Cao Son and Khai Son with bare hills full of wild plants, many leeches, no electricity, no roads, no schools, no stations, many people were "afraid".

However, with the belief that “with human strength, stones can turn into rice” and the spirit of “wherever there is difficulty, there are young people”, the cadres and youth volunteers have worked day and night in the sun and wind, working tirelessly on the hillsides to awaken the potential of the land. Wherever the land is opened up, they build houses and establish residential areas. Whatever area is exploited, the team mobilizes team members to plant and care for the plants. Up to now, the land area managed by Team 1 has reached 2,500 hectares, with 500 team members. The strengths of Team 1 are tea trees and cassava.

Although it is a new model, unprecedented, and carrying out tasks in remote mountainous areas with many difficulties, with its creative approach and high determination, the Youth Volunteer Force 1 - XDKT has soon affirmed its appropriate steps, turning the desolate Bau Dung land into a new prosperous economic zone. That initial success has created the premise for the Youth Volunteer Force to develop strongly, especially after Directive 04 CT/TU dated September 4, 1996 of the Provincial Party Committee on strengthening the leadership of the Youth Volunteer Force - XDKT, 10 Youth Volunteer Force Teams were established, operating in most of the difficult areas of the province.

The teams have effectively exploited and put into use the wild mountainous areas, contributing to the formation and development of specialized areas for industrial crops and raw material crops serving the province's processing industry such as tea, pineapple, cassava, sugarcane, etc. In addition to the main crops, the teams also focus on growing fruit trees, vegetables and implementing well the forest development, protection and afforestation program in the area (reaching 40,939 hectares). Each Youth Volunteer - Construction and Development Team has become an agricultural and forestry extension center, producing quality seeds, timely consuming products; propagating, applying and transferring scientific and technical advances into production for the team and surrounding areas, especially ethnic minorities in the highlands.

The Youth Volunteer Force - Construction and Development Teams are also places to attract, mobilize, and integrate investment resources to develop production, build essential technical infrastructure to serve production and life. This is an effective form of concentrated investment to build large-scale production models, meaningfully introducing and educating the people in mountainous areas, creating conditions and motivation for rapid and sustainable development in the region, contributing to economic development associated with new rural construction. Many teams have boldly invested and introduced new varieties of plants and animals into cultivation, creating quality products that have become their own brands that are loved by many people...

Mr. Lau Ba Mai, the first Mong person to be an officer of the 8th Youth Volunteer Team (Huoi Tu - Ky Son).

Going back to the Western Nghe An region to the land of Huoi Tu (Ky Son) where the 8th Youth Volunteer Corps is based, we can see the full significance of what the Corps has done to help the Mong people in Ky Son eliminate hunger and reduce poverty. The greatest success is that the 8th Corps has built and created the Tuyet Shan tea brand that is famous throughout the country. On the first day of receiving the mission in the land at an altitude of 1,200m above sea level, the climate is cool all year round but the terrain is steep, and there is a constant lack of water. What crops should be planted in this land to help the Mong people escape poverty, stabilize their lives, eliminate opium cultivation, and prevent illegal migration? This is a big question for the cadres and members of the Corps? Then, after many trips to the South and the North, the then Captain of the Youth Volunteer Force 8, Mr. Nguyen Ho Lam (now Deputy Chief of Office in charge of new rural construction) also found a type of tree with potential to grow in this land, which is Tuyet Shan tea, which is taken from the high mountains of Ha Giang.

Finding the right type of tree is difficult, but how to successfully test-plant it and then persuade the Mong people to believe and follow is even more difficult. The determination and enthusiasm of those who "take the lead" such as Captain Nguyen Ho Lam, followed by Nguyen Trong Canh, Nguyen Quang Trach, combined with the support of the province, Ky Son district and the children of Huoi Tu such as Mr. Vu Dua Tong - Chairman of Huoi Tu Commune People's Committee at that time and Vu Chong Dia - Chairman now, made the cadres more confident in the "vitality" of Tuyet Shan tea on Huoi Tu land. With 25 hectares of land mobilized from the Mong people to give up, the cadres and team members of the team started to reclaim, prepare the land and plant experimental tea trees.

The tea plants grew more and more lush. The brothers were very excited, but in the first few years, the people did not follow immediately, and after much persuasion, only a few households were able to plant them. The team's cadres planted the seedlings, transported them to the fields, prepared the soil, held hands, showed them how to plant tea, and guided the people. By early 2005, the Youth Volunteer Team 8 began to have the first batches of tea buds, and all products were processed on site. Up to now, the total area of ​​high-quality snow shan tea has reached 450 hectares (of which the Mong people planted 410 hectares, the rest is managed by the team), the area of ​​tea for business is 250 hectares, with an average yield of 1.5 tons/ha. 100% of the people's fresh tea buds are purchased and processed on site by the team.

To help people "fill their stomachs" and feel secure in growing tea, the team's cadres also provide guidance on techniques for growing short-term crops such as vegetables, beans of all kinds; fruit trees and developing livestock in the villages. Currently, in addition to the area of ​​1 hectare of concentrated off-season vegetables, the team has also expanded to 5 hectares in the villages of the people. Thanks to that, not only does it ensure the source of green vegetables on the spot but it also supplies the market with hundreds of tons of green vegetables, worth billions of VND each year; the area of ​​3 hectares of various fruit trees, with an estimated income of 250 million VND each year. Since 2007, the unit has also successfully piloted the planting of 20,000 lilies, generating an income of 720 million VND and built a model for raising Sind crossbred cattle in concentrated captivity, eliminating the free-range farming custom of the people.

Also here, a Youth Village has been developed with 25 households, mainly Mong ethnic children. They are guided by the Youth Volunteers on how to do business and increase production. Up to now, life has become stable. Many Mong youths strive to become pioneering and exemplary party members. Standing on the high hill, looking towards Huoi Tu Youth Village, what catches our eyes are the pretty new houses, clean and spacious grounds, each family has a small garden with many kinds of green vegetables for daily meals.

Mr. Ly Tong Cu - one of 25 households of Huoi Tu Youth Union Village happily said: "Thanks to the team, my family not only knows how to grow tea but also develops crossbred Sind cattle breeding... each year, earning more than 100 million VND". And Mr. Vu Giong Dia - Chairman of Huoi Tu Commune People's Committee excitedly said: "In Huoi Tu, only Tuyet Shan tea trees are healthy, giving the people a prosperous life! Tea trees have been growing on this land for 10 years, now Huoi Tu has less than 58% poor households, thank you to the team for bringing new thinking and ways of doing to our Mong people".

Mr. Nguyen Van An (right) - one of the first 12 people to reclaim land in Team 8 with a high-yield pumpkin harvest season

The success of the model to help people do business in Huoi Tu is also the premise for the formation of Team 10, with the task of supporting the Mong people to exploit the land potential in Na Ngoi commune. With the policy of 100% support for seeds + 5 million VND/ha, and the team members going to each household to guide and directly help with tea planting, signing a commitment to consume all fresh tea buds, with an average price of 6,000 VND/kg, the Mong people in Na Ngoi commune have now developed nearly 120 hectares of Tuyet Shan tea. The team members and the Mong people have become one family, many cadres are considered by the people as their own children and have the surname of the ethnic people, such as Mr. Vuong Trung Uy - Head of the General Administration Department is called Vu Nanh Uy, Mr. Nguyen Trong Canh - Team Leader has the Mong surname Vu Trong Canh...

Thanks to the dedicated guidance of the team members, the Mong people in Huoi Tu, Na Ngoi and Muong Long not only know how to grow tea but have also developed many models of hunger eradication and poverty reduction such as growing wet rice, raising Sind crossbred cattle, black chickens, black pigs, growing taro, squash, ginger and vegetables. The land of Huoi Tu, Na Ngoi is now rising to become a bright spot in the picture of new rural construction in Ky Son.

Looking at the reality of the past 30 years, it can be clearly seen that for a province with a large area, over 83% of which is mountainous, with 6 ethnic groups living there (Thai, Tho, Kh Mu, Mong, O Du and Dan Lai), with 419 km of border, the life of the mountainous people is still very difficult, the construction of Youth Villages, Youth Volunteers - Construction Teams in mountainous and border areas, plays an extremely important role in the task of economic and social development, maintaining national security and defense, redistributing the population, ensuring the rationality of human resources between regions in the province. With 10 Youth Volunteers - Construction Teams (now 8 teams) evenly distributed in mountainous and border districts, it has created stable and long-term jobs for more than 2,200 young households and created jobs for tens of thousands of seasonal workers.

Most of the young people before joining the team were unemployed or had unstable jobs with low incomes. Now they have stabilized their lives and risen to become rich, becoming millionaire farmers. Visiting the farms of the team members of the Youth Volunteer Teams 2 and 5 stationed in difficult areas of Thanh Chuong district, we can see the will and determination of those who "reclaimed the land". Besides the vast tea hills, every family's garden has dozens of orange trees, lemon trees, pomelo trees, and several hectares of incense roots. Every family's barn has five or seven buffaloes and cows, dozens to hundreds of chickens and ducks, and ponds full of fish. Mr. Nguyen Viet Nhan - Deputy Head of Production Team 3/2, one of the first households to reclaim land in the Youth Volunteer Force 2, said that the achievements that he and his wife have worked hard to build after decades of hard work, in addition to more than 300 orange trees, also include 5 sao of hybrid rice, 3 sao of corn, 10 sao of tea, 5 hectares of forest, 4 buffaloes, 100 chickens... each year earning from 80 - 100 million VND.

In most Youth Volunteer and Construction Teams, the team members make products and benefit from the products they make. The team performs the task of managing economic projects approved by the State; managing land use planning, providing technical guidance, organizing the “midwifery” of both ends (seeds, fertilizers, pesticides and product consumption, etc.), supporting production for team members and people in the area. “Without the attention, encouragement, close and dedicated guidance and direction from the team command, how could we have had the courage to stay, settle down and get rich on this land? Thank you to the team for bringing tea trees, orange trees… and prosperity to our team members” – Mr. Ho Viet Cuong – one of the “millionaire” farmers with an average income of 250 million VND/year in production team 3/2 (Youth Volunteer Team 2) sincerely expressed when we visited his family’s VACR farm model.

Not only promoting economic development, the Youth Volunteer Force - Construction and Development Teams also contribute to building a new cultural life, eliminating backward customs, preserving and promoting national cultural identity; eliminating illegal logging in the areas where the teams are stationed, contributing to maintaining security and order, and border security. The teams are also the place where many couples of team members meet, their happiness "blossoms and bears fruit" from sharing hardships, hardships and sacrifices. Many people have become "grandfathers and grandmothers" of the Youth Volunteer Force, families with 2-3 generations of children and grandchildren settling down and working, attached to the lands they reclaimed with their own hands.

Along with the task of exploiting the potential of difficult areas and border highlands, the teams are an effective educational environment for youth union members to train, contribute and mature, and are the cradle for nurturing and training cadres for the locality and the youth union organization. Many generations of Youth Volunteers - Construction and Development "soldiers" have become managers of the teams, many have changed careers, become chairmen, secretaries, deputy secretaries of districts, heads and deputy heads of departments and unions in the province... The success and mark of those who "reclaimed land" are the clearest evidence of the will, aspiration, and pioneering spirit of "wherever there is a need, there is youth, wherever there is difficulty, there is youth" that has become the action of the young generation.

However, after nearly 30 years of construction and development, as a new, pioneering model, the Youth Volunteer Force Teams have encountered some problems during their operations. And transformation is inevitable when “the old shirt is too tight” and cannot keep up with the general trend of the integration period.

Article and photos: Khanh Ly - My Ha