Nghe An strives for the advancement of women in ethnic minority areas.
A major disadvantage for women in ethnic minority areas is their limited access to information and knowledge in all aspects, coupled with gender-related mindsets and attitudes that hinder their development. Understanding this, in recent years, women's associations at all levels in Nghe An have implemented many activities to support ethnic minority women in affirming their roles and positions in the family and society.
Creating an environment that empowers women to confidently thrive.
In Ca village, Chau Quang commune (Quy Hop district), Ms. Luong Thi Ly has a rather difficult situation, being a poor household in the village. Having built her family from scratch, and with the addition of two children, especially her eldest son who suffers from anemia and requires monthly hospital visits to the provincial hospital for treatment, the family's life has become even more challenging.
Ms. Luong Thi Ly shared: "Our family's life was just 'holding on' like that; then in 2019, after participating in a training course on livestock farming and receiving support for bank loans managed by the Women's Union, my family bought two breeding cows and built a barn. During that time, Women's Union officials regularly visited to encourage and guide us on additional livestock farming knowledge. During holidays, Tet (Lunar New Year), or any other support source, the Women's Union and the entire local political system prioritized our family, creating motivation for us to improve our lives."
Starting with just two cows, after five years, Ms. Ly's family now owns a total of 12 cows; of which they have sold six, worth over 120 million VND, to repay bank loans, repair their house, and purchase household items such as a TV and refrigerator. Currently, in addition to their assets and the six cows, Ms. Ly and her husband work in the fields and gardens, and with the income from their second child who is now employed, they have created a stable family life and escaped poverty.
As for Ms. Luong Thi Hong, from Na Ty village, Chau Thon commune (Que Phong district), thanks to participating in communication and training sessions on livestock farming, crop cultivation, child rearing, building happy families, and learning from examples of women who have risen to become economic leaders, she has gradually changed her awareness and mindset. Starting in 2020, Ms. Hong joined a cooperative for raising Muscovy ducks.Women's AssociationThe commune implemented the project and provided 50 ducklings and feed. After the first batch of ducks yielded a profit, she gradually increased the flock in subsequent batches. After a year, she was raising over 300 Muscovy ducks per batch, and four batches per year, selling over 1,200 ducks annually. After deducting expenses, her family earned approximately 60-70 million VND per year. With the knowledge and money from duck farming, Ms. Hong's family also opened a general store, combined with improving their garden to grow vegetables and digging a pond for fish farming to further improve their lives.
According to Ms. Luong Thi Ha, President of the Women's Association of Chau Thon commune, what is admirable about Ms. Luong Thi Hong is: "Not only does she have the will to improve her family's economic situation, but from understanding her own past difficulties due to lack of knowledge and capital, Ms. Hong has been very active with the Association in disseminating information, sharing experiences, and encouraging women to engage in economic activities. She has also encouraged women to make regular savings to support poor women and members in developing their businesses and escaping poverty."
Efforts for the advancement of women
The disadvantages faced by women in ethnic minority areas stem from limited access to information and knowledge in all aspects, coupled with gender-related mindsets and attitudes that hinder their development. Understanding this, women's associations at all levels in Nghe An province have made efforts to implement numerous support and collaborative activities, creating changes in the thinking and practices of ethnic minority women, helping them increasingly assert their roles and positions in the family and society.
In Que Phong district, the main activities of the Women's Union at all levels are focused on communication and raising awareness in all aspects for cadres, members, and women; linked with organizing clubs, models, cooperatives, and cooperative groups to gather and attract cadres, members, and women to participate, such as the "Women and the Law" club; livelihood models for poor women; the "5 No's, 3 Cleanliness" branch model; the "Women's Self-Managed Green-Clean-Beautiful Road" model; the "Clean House, Beautiful Garden" model; and building models to support women in developing family economies, overcoming poverty, and taking control of their lives...
Ms. Lang Thi Nhan, a member of the Standing Committee of the Women's Union of Que Phong district, affirmed: Through these activities, significant changes have been made in the awareness, thinking, and actions of cadres, members, and women. Many ethnic minority women have learned to manage their family lives, develop their economy, and rise out of poverty (in the past two years, 82 families headed by women have escaped poverty); at the same time, they actively participate in social movements, notably in environmental sanitation, preserving the cultural identity of their people, and protecting border security…
In Quy Hop district, according to Ms. Truong Thi Bich Hiep, Vice President of the District Women's Union, to create a change in mindset and practices, it is first necessary to provide information and raise awareness in all aspects for officials, members, and women in ethnic minority communities. Therefore, the dissemination of policies, guidelines, and knowledge and experience on production, restructuring of crops and livestock, developing household economies, organizing civilized life, building happy families, and raising well-behaved children... is highly valued by all levels of the Women's Union in Quy Hop district.
In addition to organizing communication activities at the district and commune levels, the Women's Union branches in Quy Hop district, in coordination with various levels and sectors, brought conferences to villages and hamlets; and established 72 "Community Communication Teams" to promote the role of people in villages and hamlets in disseminating information and mobilizing support through a regular and continuous "slow and steady" approach to create changes in awareness, thereby generating action among members and women.
Ms. Hoang Thi Thu Hien, Permanent Vice President of the Provincial Women's Union, stated: In recent times, women's unions at all levels in the province have organized numerous communication activities, training courses, dialogues, forums, competitions, and clubs… Implementing Project 8, under the Program for socio-economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas; the entire province has established 257 “Community Communication Teams”; 28 “Trusted Addresses”; 31 “Leaders of Change” clubs; and organized 30 policy dialogues… Through these activities, relationships have been built and connections created between union officials at all levels and members and women, while simultaneously addressing some common issues faced by ethnic minority women, especially gender stereotypes; domestic violence; child marriage, consanguineous marriage; and violations of the law.
Many activities aimed at supporting ethnic minority women in economic development and poverty alleviation have been prioritized by women's associations at all levels. Since 2022, five livelihood groups, cooperatives, and associations led by women's associations have been established; simultaneously, support has been provided to develop many livelihood models to help women-headed families escape poverty and near-poverty, and to support ethnic minority women in starting businesses and developing their economies.
To continue creating positive and progressive changes in mindset and practices, and to improve the material and spiritual lives of ethnic minority women, the Standing Vice President of the Provincial Women's Union emphasized the need to continue innovating the content and methods of operation of Women's Unions at all levels, focusing strongly on the grassroots, caring for disadvantaged areas and ethnic minority women. To achieve this, the staff of the Women's Union at all levels must continue to thoroughly implement the "three together" principle: listening to women, explaining things to women so they understand, and working together so women follow; and focusing on building and spreading the core values of the Women's Union: "Unity, humanity, creativity, aspiration, and development."
