When party members go first...

(Baonghean) -Due to the low starting point, the hunger eradication and poverty reduction in Chau Thang (Quy Chau) encountered many difficulties. However, in the midst of difficulties, cadres, party members and people here joined hands and unanimously sought new directions, suitable to actual conditions, to open a way out of poverty.

Before returning to Chau Thang, I had the opportunity to discuss the work of building and consolidating the grassroots political system in Quy Chau with comrade Lang Van Xuan - Head of the District Party Committee's Organization Board. When mentioning the effectiveness of the cadre rotation work, Chau Thang emerged as a typical example of the effectiveness of the correct policy, in accordance with the people's wishes. Thanks to the bold and decisive steps in cadre work, today Chau Thang's appearance has improved a lot, even though the reinforced cadre has been withdrawn by the district to take on a new position.

It only takes about 20 minutes by motorbike from Tan Lac Town along National Highway 48, Chau Thang appears prosperous with sugarcane fields, green rice fields on the other side of the Hieu River flowing slowly downstream. We were received by Comrade Vang Thanh Minh - Deputy Secretary of the Commune Party Committee. Born, raised and established right on the land left by his ancestors, Deputy Secretary Minh understands very well the difficulties of his homeland and the exciting changes today. Comrade Minh humorously said: Hieu River gives Chau Thang many things but also takes away many things from us. The most important is time. The riverbed is only a few dozen meters wide but separates Chau Thang like an oasis because behind it are towering mountains and in front is a deep river. Only when the bridge across the river was completed a few years ago, connecting Chau Thang with National Highway 48, was the "isolation" broken. We farmers really have the conditions to exchange and trade conveniently with the outside world".

Mr. Vang Thanh Minh is taking care of the Roc10 sugarcane field.

With bridges and roads, the fertile alluvial lands in Xet 1, Xet 2, Chieng Ban 1, Chieng Ban 2 villages along the Hieu River have been awakened. From the initial small sugarcane fields, in 2010, the Commune Party Committee mobilized people to convert low-efficiency colored land to growing sugarcane for the sugar factory in Quy Hop. After 3 years of standing in this remote area, the effectiveness of sugarcane is not only in the statistics on paper or in the advocacy of commune and factory officials, but has actually existed in every household and in the daily life of the people. Coming to Chieng Ban 2 village, I met Party member Le Van Thang, one of the first people who boldly planted sugarcane on low-efficiency colored land and alluvial lands. For the past three years, every crop, on an area of ​​27 hectares, his family's sugarcane output is nearly 20 tons. Recently, he was awarded by the sugar factory because his family's finished sugarcane has high sugar content.

Since then, his family has become a trusted address for villagers whenever they need advice on technical issues related to growing raw sugarcane. “When sugarcane was first introduced, in addition to technical support from the commune and factory, villagers often exchanged experiences with each other. Those who grew it earlier guided those who grew it later on the care process and protection awareness. Now, seeing the effectiveness of sugarcane, everyone is excited,” said Mr. Thang.

From the initial hesitation, sugarcane has now stood firm and has a certain position in the lives of Chau Thang people. The proof is that when I went through the villages, everywhere I saw the vast green color of sugarcane. Comrade Vang Thanh Minh said: "The areas that do not have enough water for irrigation have all been converted to grow sugarcane. Now, the total sugarcane area of ​​the commune has reached 65 hectares. Everyone is excited."

To increase economic value per unit area, Chau Thang is in the process of introducing high-yield sugarcane varieties to replace old varieties. With the support of the district agricultural extension center, last crop year, 3 households boldly switched to growing Roc 10 sugarcane. They were Lo Thi Nhung, 50a in Xet 1 village, Lo Van Tan, 50a in Xet 2 village and the family of Deputy Secretary Minh, 1ha. On the way to visit his family's sugarcane field, listening to comrade Minh talk, I knew that he was very fond of this new sugarcane variety. Because after the first crop, the Roc 10 sugarcane variety yielded 20 tons/ha higher than the old variety. This means that the family's income also increased.

But seeing the way party members do business and share in this mountainous region, we can see that comrades do not do business only for their own benefit. Because they know how to share success and joy with the community. After the first crop, comrade Minh sold sugarcane seeds at a preferential price to the families of Lu Van Thuy and Vi Van Ky, both in Xet 2 village. Both of them were converting their land from growing crops to growing sugarcane for the first time. Seeing the sugarcane fields growing green and lush, everyone was happy, confident that there would be a bumper crop. "I was trained in planting and caring for new sugarcane varieties in the district, so I understood the process from plowing, drying, making beds, fertilizing, hilling, etc. Therefore, when I returned to successfully test-plant, my first thought was to share and expand it for my people to do the same," comrade Minh honestly expressed.

Chau Thang not only has sugarcane, but the mountainous area also has a rich reserve of forest products. The whole commune currently has more than 311 hectares of acacia, cinnamon and especially linden (a native tree species with quite high economic value) forests that are being protected. In addition, the commune is also one of the key rice growing areas of Quy Chau with a total rice growing area of ​​103 hectares. The above figures show that Chau Thang land has great potential.

However, the commune has not yet fully utilized this important internal resource, leading to the poverty rate still accounting for nearly 50% of the population. So what can be done to help Chau Thang escape poverty? Perhaps the answer lies in the way the Party Committee, government and people have implemented to bring sugarcane to this land in recent years. It is both an important indicator and a suggestion for a new direction when production is closely linked to the scale of goods. Of course, for the movements in Chau Thang to be breakthroughs, "external stimulus" is needed, as comrade Vang Thanh Minh - Deputy Secretary of the Commune Party Committee said when we said goodbye.

Thanh Duy