The unique Do paper craft village in Nghe An has only 6 households remaining in the profession.

Hard work, unstable prices

As soon as the sun rose, Mr. Nguyen Van Ha, hamlet 3, Nghi Phong commune (Nghi Loc) brought a pile of niet trees (the main raw material for making do paper) out to the yard and spread them evenly. He quickly peeled off the bark, the resin stuck to his hands, and over time created black stains that were difficult to wash off. For generations, people who have made do paper have often had dirty hands like that.

Mr. Ha is one of the few households that still maintain the profession of making do paper in Nghe An. He said: This profession was left by my grandparents, and I have continued it for more than 40 years now, built a house, and raised my children from these niệt trees. Although the work is hard and the income is not much, it is the traditional profession of our ancestors, so our family still tries to maintain it...

Witnessing the process of making Do paper products, one can see the hard work of the craftsmen. After bringing home the niet tree, the black outer bark is scraped off, then thinly sliced ​​like a sheet of paper and put into a pot of lime water to boil continuously for more than 1 day so that the bark from tough and hard becomes softer.

After being boiled thoroughly, the bark is removed and pounded vigorously with a pestle to get the powder. This powder is mixed with water to coat the mold, then dried in the sun to create sheets of dó paper.

“The special feature of the Do paper making profession is that the steps are completely manual, without the support of any kind of machinery, so to make a sheet of Do paper, the craftsman hardly takes a break during the day. The final step is to dry it, if the weather is rainy like this season, then we have to wait for a sunny day to complete it. The result is all up to the weather…” - Mr. Ha shared.

Although it is so hard, however, the income from making do paper is not the same as before. The price of each sheet of do paper is only 3,000 - 4,000 VND. If a family of 2 - 3 people works together, they will only get about 100 sheets a day, earning about 300,000 VND/day. This amount of money, after deducting materials such as niet tree trunks, lime, firewood... and the whole day's effort, is almost no profit.

Low prices, unstable output, and unsecured income are the main reasons why many local households have had to switch to other jobs.

Ms. Mai Thi Huong, a craftswoman, said: Do paper has long been used to make paper fans, incense sticks or fish stickers, however, all markets are facing difficulties. Now people use electric fans and rechargeable fans, if they use fish stickers, the situation of catching seafood will be difficult, fishermen will import less paper. People can only import for incense craft villages, but they also buy a modest amount. In their hearts, people still want to continue to maintain the profession, but it is very difficult to ensure daily life, so now they do the job, and when they have free time, they do other jobs to earn some money...".

Encouragement to keep the profession

According to the Nghe An Rural Development Department, currently, the whole province has 182 craft villages, of which there is only one craft village making do paper in Phong Phu hamlet, Nghi Phong commune, Nghi Loc district.

Mr. Nguyen Van Ngai, head of Hamlet 3 (after merging with Phong Phu Hamlet), Nghi Phong Commune, said: Being the only area producing Do paper in the province has been a source of pride and honor for local people for many years. However, the craft village has now faded and is in danger of disappearing. From more than 100 households doing the craft, now there are only 6 households remaining in the whole hamlet, namely the families of Mr. Ha, Mrs. Huong, Mr. Tri, Mr. Tam, Mr. Phong, and Mr. Son. The other households have changed jobs, gone to construction, worked far away...

According to Mr. Ngai, there are three main reasons why the unique Do paper craft village in Nghe An is gradually fading away. Firstly, the main raw material for making the craft, the Niet tree, is no longer abundant and is very difficult to find. Secondly, there is no labor force to do the craft, as the number of young workers in the locality has gone to work far away, exported labor, and the remaining workers are elderly and middle-aged households, so the transmission and preservation of the craft is no longer promising. Thirdly, product prices are unstable, market demand is decreasing, and people are no longer interested in the craft because their income is not enough to cover their living expenses.

Through the discussion, Mr. Tran Nguyen Hoa - Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Nghi Loc district said: The profession of making do paper in Nghi Phong commune has existed for a long time, however, the more society develops and modernizes, the weaker this product becomes in the market. The fact that people change their profession is also unavoidable. However, Nghi Loc district as well as Nghi Phong commune government still want people to preserve traditional professions, not to let them fade away. Every year, we also directly visit and encourage people and when there are support policies, we will always give priority to people doing the profession to continue to stick with it, not to lose the profession left by their ancestors.