Bai Gao Village: 16 years without a third child

(Baonghean) - The first impression when arriving at Bai Gao village, Chau Khe commune (Con Cuong), is that the roads in the village are all concreted cleanly, with spacious stilt houses hidden under the cool shade of trees on both sides. Bai Gao is a village that has maintained the title of cultural village for 14 consecutive years and is also one of the most prosperous villages in the commune and district. This is partly due to the village's very good implementation of population work - family planning...

When asked about the “secret” to maintaining the achievement of the villagers not having a third child for many years, Ms. Lo Thi Tam - Population Collaborator of Bai Gao village said: “Before 1998, like many other villages of Chau Khe commune, Bai Gao was a poor village with up to 50% of households being poor and 4 households being hungry. The reason is limited arable land, while the population is large. The whole village has a natural area of ​​134 hectares, but only 37.4 hectares of arable land, of which 8.3 hectares are two-crop rice fields, 29.1 hectares of hilly land, the rest is forestry land and residential land. If the total natural area is divided by the number of households, Bai Gao is the village with the lowest average land area per capita in the district.

Mr. and Mrs. Kha Van Tinh - Lo Thi Quy talk with population specialist of Chau Khe commune (Con Cuong).

To overcome the difficulties, besides finding ways to change crops and increase the harvest season, the Bai Gao people, who have experienced poverty and illiteracy due to having many children, realized that they should have fewer children to have food and raise them well; after many meetings, the village made a convention not to have a third child and used that as a criterion for competition between families.

To concretize that convention, Bai Gao village established a club not to have a third child with the participation of 7 couples led by Ms. Loc Thi Hoang - Head of the Women's Association. The club members are responsible for acquiring knowledge about population - family planning, propagating to couples of childbearing age about the consequences of having many children, mobilizing and guiding the application of contraceptive measures, instructing on how to educate and care for children...".

The villagers voluntarily and well implemented the village convention thanks to the efforts, mobilization and setting examples of those who do propaganda work. For example, Ms. Loc Thi Hoang - the first head of the Club for not having a third child - former Head of the Women's Union, Head of the Front Work Committee, Head of the Village, gave birth to 2 daughters but was determined not to have a third child. Or the couple Kha Van Tinh - Lo Thi Quy also gave birth to only daughters, the older child was born in 1992, the younger child was born in 1995, but they were also determined not to have a third child. The family always lived in harmony, loved each other, both husband and wife actively participated in the Club for not having a third child since the club was founded. Mr. Tinh said: "Having few children, we have the conditions to develop the family economy, take care of and raise our children. Currently, our 2 daughters both have stable jobs and the couple has more conditions to participate more in the village's union activities".

Up to now, the Bai Gao Village Club for not having a third child has been operating effectively and has had 48 couples of childbearing age participating. Since 1998, Bai Gao Village has not had a third child. Through conversations with Bai Gao residents, it is easy to see that they no longer have the concept of having a son to continue the family line, "having both boys and girls". Instead, having fewer children, raising good children, and developing the economy are the top priorities. There are many couples in the village who have only one child but still do not have a third child. Currently, Bai Gao Village has 25 couples who have only one child, of which 12 couples have daughters.

Besides exemplary couples such as Ha Van Thai - Lo Thi Xo, Vi Van Dan - Loc Thi Ba, Loc Van Mui - Lo Thi Tien, Vi Van Dong - Lo Thi Kim... there are also cases of giving birth to only girls, intending to have a third child, but thanks to the active participation of population collaborators and mass organizations in propaganda and mobilization, they were promptly stopped, such as the couple Kha Van Linh - Lo Thi Khai, the couple Lo Van Ty - Lo Thi Hoe... Among these, the most difficult case is the couple Lo Van Ty - a party member of the village party cell. Just because he wanted to have another son, in 2012, Ty applied to leave the party. However, thanks to the club members, members of the farmers' association and women's association who regularly come to propagate, encourage, and analyze the pros and cons, the couple's thinking has changed, first from Ms. Hoe and then Mr. Ty, and now they have completely given up the idea of ​​having a third child...

Having few children, Bai Gao villagers have the conditions to take care of their children's education. Every family tries to send their children to school, at least until they finish junior high school. The rate of high school students and those who take the entrance exams to intermediate schools, colleges and universities is 80%. The whole village has 3 students who are excellent students of the district, 6 students are studying at university, 2 students are studying at college and some students have graduated from universities and colleges. Environmental sanitation is ensured, security and order are maintained, the village has no social evils for many years. With a prosperous life, Bai Gao villagers have the conditions to preserve the cultural beauty of the Thai people.

Up to now, nearly 80% of the households in the village still have solidly built stilt houses, designed in the traditional architectural style of the Thai people. Bai Gao women still maintain their traditional costumes and keep the habit of weaving brocade. At night or during the off-season, women sit at the loom to weave skirts and scarves to serve the needs of their families or sell in the village. Out of 93 households in the village, 85 have achieved the title of cultural family. In 2000, Bai Gao was awarded the title of Cultural Village, and since then, this title has always been maintained - becoming a bright spot in the movement "All people unite to build a cultural life in residential areas" of the province.

Minh Quan