Many poverty reduction support models are not sustainable.

(Baonghean) - With the goal of helping people in communes, villages, and hamlets find suitable crops and livestock to escape poverty, many pilot models are being implemented in Quy Chau district. However, for these models to help poor people achieve good and sustainable results, it is necessary to strengthen technical support and loan capital for production investment.

Initial results

In the final days of the year, the atmosphere at the Quy Chau District Agricultural Extension Center was quite busy. People were rushing back and forth between the communes in the district to inspect and summarize the results of production models. Mr. Sam Van Thai, the station chief, introduced us to the initial results of the pilot models being implemented in Quy Chau district, aiming to help people in the communes, villages, and hamlets find suitable crops and livestock to escape poverty.

In Hoa Binh village, Chau Binh commune, since April 2013, the Agricultural Extension Station has implemented a high-yield gac fruit cultivation model, piloting it in 9 households. The villagers were provided with 400 high-yield gac seedlings along with fertilizer and pesticides. Under the close guidance and supervision of agricultural extension officers and engineers, by the end of 2013, the villagers' gac orchards began to yield impressive results: all 400 trees produced fruit, with some trees yielding up to 30 fruits, an average yield of 1.4 kg of fruit, and a total of 8.4 tons of finished gac fruit. With the current purchase price of 7,000 VND/kg from Nghe An Food Joint Stock Company, 1 hectare of high-yield gac fruit yielded nearly 59 million VND in its first year.

According to projections, by the second year, after the gac fruit trees have adapted to the climate and soil conditions, yields will double, and total income will exceed 117 million VND. This is truly a dream figure for the poor people in Quy Chau. After more than half a year of testing the high-yield gac fruit cultivation model, the Agricultural Extension Center found that gac fruit trees are perfectly suited to the climate, hilly soil conditions, and farming methods of the Thai ethnic people in Quy Chau district. Gac fruit is a plant with few pests and diseases, with a lifespan of 15-20 years, providing stable income for the people. On the same unit of land, gac fruit trees are currently yielding the highest income. Importantly, this model has also attracted businesses to participate alongside the government, farmers, and scientists, as Quy Chau district has signed a contract with Nghe An Food Joint Stock Company to purchase all of the farmers' gac fruit at market price.

Besides the high-yield gac fruit cultivation model, a high-yield model of growing fragrant root (Rhizoma Aquilariae) is emerging in Quy Chau district. In December 2012, Mr. Ho Viet Thang's household in Tan Huong 2 Hamlet, Tan Lac Town, Quy Chau District, was selected by the District Agricultural Extension Center as a pilot site for developing fragrant root propagation models. After more than a year of implementation, by the end of 2013, the model began to show effectiveness as the fragrant root plants developed very well, and propagation by cuttings yielded a high survival rate. Previously, models of growing fragrant root under acacia and rubber plantations had been successfully implemented in Hoa Hai village (Chau Hanh commune), yielding very positive results, with an average yield of 4.5 - 5 tons of fresh roots per hectare, generating hundreds of millions of dong per hectare. Currently, this model is being replicated in Chau Phong, Chau Binh, Chau Tien communes, Tan Lac town, etc.

While the cultivation of fragrant root and gac fruit is becoming a highly effective and productive economic model, breeding sows and Quy Chau Muscovy ducks are also truly helping many households in Quy Chau escape poverty. Leading us on a tour of sow breeding models in Chau Tien commune, Mr. Lo Thanh Son, Head of the Agriculture Department of Quy Chau district, said that more than a year ago, some poor households in Chau Tien commune received breeding sows. After a year of proper care and techniques, these households now have herds of up to 12 piglets. “This Tet holiday, our family will sell these 12 piglets to get money for the holiday and buy another piglet to raise,” confided Ms. Lo Thi Thu from Hong Tien village. Mr. Son added that many families in the remote communes of the district are also very successful with the model of raising Quy Muscovy ducks in streams. The ducks sell at high prices, so people are not afraid of being exploited and are very enthusiastic about restocking their flocks. This confirms that many models supporting the economic development of ethnic minorities in Quy Chau district are proving effective, making a significant contribution to helping ethnic minority people change their business mindset and gradually escape poverty.

Many models fail prematurely.

Unlike the bustling atmosphere of the days leading up to Tet in Tan Lac town, Chieng village in Chau Thuan commune is quite quiet and deserted. The village has 71 households, including 16 poor households. Over the years, Chieng village has received support from many programs and projects to help its residents escape poverty. In 2010, 10 households in the village received calves from Project 135. Everyone was happy and excited because, for poor Thai ethnic households, a calf worth 7-8 million VND is a significant asset. Like many other poor households, after receiving the calf, Mr. Cam Ba Hop tried his best to care for it, but due to various reasons, during the cold spell at the beginning of 2013, his calf died from the cold. Many other calves belonging to families in the village also died in the same situation. According to our survey results, out of the 10 calves in Chieng village that received support from Project 135, only 1 remains; the other 9 have died.

In Tham 1 village, a poor hamlet in Chau Thuan commune, 13 households received 13 calves from Project 135 in 2012. After nearly a year of care, only 3 remain. The situation is not much better in Tham 2 village; of the 12 project calves received by the villagers, 5 have died from the cold. Ms. Ha Thi Phong, an agricultural officer in Chau Thuan commune, said that in 2010, Chau Thuan commune received 41 calves, but after a period of care, 34 died. In Nong village, all 8 died, and in Chieng village, 9 out of 10 died. In 2012, Chau Thuan commune received 25 calves with a budget of 200 million VND, but only 10 remain alive. The number of project calves that are thriving and reproducing can now be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Ginger cultivation model in Chau Thuan commune.

Besides the policy of supporting calves, Project 135 also provides support for pigs, including Quy Chau breed ducks, etc. However, the results have not been as expected. Of the 1,600 ducks and 32 sows provided to poor people in Quy Chau district who are beneficiaries of Project 135, many families have sold their pigs and ducks but are unable to restock. In Chau Thuan commune, 8 out of 16 sows have died; in 2011, Chau Binh commune received 26 piglets under Project 135, but to date, very few have survived and developed, resulting in restocking.

In 2012, Chau Thuan commune piloted a ginger cultivation model on 2 hectares in Chang village. The ginger was grown under the forest canopy and on hilly land, developing very quickly and without pests or diseases. At harvest time, each ginger plant yielded an average of over 1 kg of ginger tubers, with a yield of 15 tons per hectare. The ginger was of very good quality, with uniform and beautiful tubers, bringing great joy to the local people. However, the joy was short-lived; the ginger cultivation model quickly failed due to a lack of stable market outlets. Mr. Luong Van Dung, an agricultural officer in Chau Thuan commune, stated that nowadays, people only grow ginger for personal consumption; no one grows it commercially anymore because they don't know who to sell it to…

Regarding some models of support for people that did not achieve the desired results, especially the high number of project calves that died, agricultural officials in Chau Thuan commune said the main reason was the prolonged periods of severe cold weather. In addition, the calves were too small, while the beneficiaries were poor and very poor people who lacked the skills to care for them, could not invest in feed, and lacked the knowledge to cope with diseases. Meanwhile, the calves provided were often brought from other places, unsuitable for the local climate and soil, and the customs of the people involved free-range farming without sturdy shelters, so the calves could not develop. Furthermore, some households, lacking awareness, tried to sell or slaughter the project calves or sell them for money to spend and reported to the village that the calves died from the cold…

In reality, for a long time, policies supporting ethnic minority production have followed the principle of "giving a fishing rod instead of a fish." However, the ineffectiveness of models and projects supporting poor ethnic minorities in Quy Chau district over the past period shows that while the "fishing rod" is provided, the "fishermen" are the ones who actually fish. According to Mr. Lo Thanh Son, Head of the District's Agriculture Department, programs and projects need to be allocated more to those with better economic conditions and knowledge of science and technology, so that they can serve as role models for other households. Projects must be focused and targeted; if effective, they should be continued, otherwise, other crops and livestock should be prioritized to avoid waste.

Implementing support programs for the poor is a correct policy of the Party and the State, aiming to help people escape poverty. However, it is also necessary to equip people with knowledge of science and technology, provide them with loans for investment and production, and simultaneously provide hands-on guidance from local officials, so that these models of assistance for the poor achieve good and sustainable results.

Nguyen Khoa