Livelihood support in Ngoc Son commune

(Baonghean) - To contribute to helping and supporting people with disabilities and orphans to improve their lives, the Provincial Association for the Protection of People with Disabilities and Orphans has selected Ngoc Son mountainous commune, Quynh Luu district to implement the Livelihood Support Project. Up to now, after more than 2 years of implementation, the project has shown practical results.

Mai Thi Ha's family in village 8, Ngoc Son commune (Quynh Luu) is a particularly poor household. Her husband died early, so Ha had to work hard to take care of her small family. In addition to farming 2 sao of rice fields, she did whatever anyone hired her to do, but she still always lacked food. The small house was also seriously degraded. During the rainy season, she and her children were worried that the house would collapse. In September 2012, when the province's Livelihood Support Project supported 7 million VND, she borrowed 11 million VND from her brothers and relatives to buy a breeding cow. Up to now, after more than 2 years of care, the cow has given birth to two litters. Ha sold 2 calves for 24 million VND, which motivated her to borrow more money to build a new house with 3 closed rooms above and solid rooms below. Temporarily assured about her place to live, from now on she will focus on making a living to ensure food and take care of her children's education. She confided: "The livelihood support project is really the motivation for my children and I to move forward in life."

Ms. Mai Thi Ha (right) in her new house.

Ngoc Son mountainous commune, Quynh Luu district has 287 disabled people and orphans, including 217 disabled people and 70 orphans. Most of these people have extremely difficult family circumstances and depend on relatives and the help of the community and society for their living. To help them create initial capital to do business, the Livelihood Support Project for Disabled People and Orphans was established and this is a great source of motivation for many households to develop their economy.

Participating in the project, 40 disabled people and orphans were supported and helped with seeds, animals, construction of works such as houses, repair of toilets, wells, wheelchair access roads to cultural houses, medical stations, roads to houses for disabled people; providing wheelchairs for disabled people, bicycles for poor orphans to go to school, scholarships for poor orphans with good academic performance... with a budget of 175 million VND. Of which, 13 households received 13 breeding cows and buffaloes and support money for building barns with a total value of 100 million VND. Mr. Ho Van Lap - Chairman of the People's Committee of Ngoc Son Commune, Head of the Livelihood Support Project Board said: "The beneficiaries of the Commune's Livelihood Project all have the will to rise up. Up to now, many households have escaped poverty, such as the family of Ms. Tran Thi Thanh in Village 1, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hai in Village 2; some households have risen from poor to near-poor, such as Mr. Ho Khac Thuong's household in Village 1, Mr. Tran Khac Tu's household in Village 6...".

The reality in Ngoc Son commune has shown that the Livelihood Support Project is truly a driving force for many disabled people and orphans to rise up in life, helping them improve their lives, confidently overcome their inferiority complexes, integrate, and live a useful life for the community and society.

Thuy Nga