Pioneers in Na Xai village

(Baonghean) -Following Mr. Nguyen Ba Kiem - Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Hanh Dich Commune (Que Phong District), we visited the farm of Mr. Ha Van Viet, in Na Xai village, Hanh Dich Commune. From the village center, after more than 1 hour of walking on the road that is being invested in and expanded, we were amazed by a large farm of over 20 hectares, the immense green of the cinnamon, cajuput, and xoan forests in the growing period, the green terraced rice fields in the stage of heading. The sound of roosters crowing, ducks quacking...

It was 11am, the sun was shining, Mr. Viet still hadn't stopped working. In front of me was an old man about 70 years old, thin, slightly bent, still very agile... He said: Orphaned and a veteran who fought in the K5 battlefield in Laos, during his time in the campaign he was honored as a determined soldier for 3 consecutive years. After completing his mission, he returned home, got married and lived in Tri Le commune, Que Phong district. In 1994, he and his wife and children moved to Na Xai village. Coming to the new land, he decided to find a place to reclaim land and start a business. From Na Xai village, his legs were tired when he arrived at the current farm location.

Panorama of Mr. Ha Van Viet's farm.

Pointing to the terraced fields in front of his house, he said: These terraced fields used to have large trees, measuring a meter in diameter. The transformation into rice fields was very difficult. With the perseverance and hard work of the couple, they have now become fertile terraced fields, providing enough rice for the whole family every year and also for sale.

He and his wife and children can do land reclamation, cultivate land, dig fish ponds, and fence gardens, but having capital to invest in production and buy breeding animals is very difficult. He decided to borrow from the bank, and with the support of all levels and sectors, he invested in raising cattle, poultry, etc. In recent years, realizing that the area is suitable for raising buffaloes and is more economically efficient than raising cows, he decided to sell cows and switch to raising buffaloes. Currently, he has a herd of 14 buffaloes and 3 cows. He does not let the buffaloes roam freely in the forest, but raises them in barns. He digs high ditches to prevent the buffaloes from coming into contact with the surrounding environment, to avoid disease. His herd of buffaloes and cows grows quickly. There is a buffalo that traders paid over 20 million VND for but the family has not sold yet. He divides the farm into areas to grow specific types of plants and animals. In places with favorable water sources, he digs ponds to raise fish, both to retain water for irrigation of the fields and to help the fish grow quickly. He also developed poultry farming such as chickens, ducks, etc. There were times when he had hundreds of chickens and ducks, especially the famous delicious duck breed in Que Phong.

Fish farming model.

He also fenced off over 1 hectare of Hoan Linh trees, a timber tree with high economic value. Currently, there are trees with a diameter of 1 person hugging, promising to bring his family a considerable income when harvested.

In the past 3 years, the VACR model has brought Mr. Ha Van Viet's family an annual income of 80 to 100 million VND. Not only has he been able to pay off his bank loan, he now has over 300 million VND in savings.

Many households in Na Xai village have followed the VACR economic model to enrich their families and their hometowns.

Article and photos: Hai Thuong (Border Guard)