The leaders of the villages in the Western region of Nghe An

Pioneer in Pha Khao

Pha Khao is considered one of the most remote and isolated villages in Mai Son commune, Tuong Duong district. However, the Party Secretary of Gia Ba Gau village (born in 1971) said that despite the remoteness, the lives of the villagers have gradually improved.

Remember, in 2002, when Ba Gau was elected by the villagers to hold the position of Party Cell Secretary, this remote village still faced many difficulties: 100% of households in the village were poor, the rate of children dropping out of school was high, and the situation of illegal migration to Laos still existed...

Photo: Phuoc Anh

As a son of Pha Khao, growing up drinking water from the Moong Nam source, Mr. Gia Ba Gau was very concerned about the poverty of his village. He understood that the key to that situation was a matter of awareness.

So, Gia Ba Gau repeatedly went to households with people who migrated freely, telling them that such free migration was not right, children had to go to school, parents had to stay in the village to focus on farming and raising livestock.

Along with that, he mobilized party members in the cell to pioneer in eliminating old farming practices and applying scientific and technological advances in production so that people would believe and follow.

Old Man Ba ​​Gau boldly brought rice to the village, and reclaimed the barren fields to grow corn, ginger, and squash. He also encouraged the villagers to focus on raising cattle for commercial purposes, instead of grazing them in the forest as before. In particular, Old Man Ba ​​Gau was recognized by the villagers for partially solving the "problem" of domestic electricity by blocking the flow and installing mini generators.

The mark of Party Cell Secretary Gia Ba Gau is still evident in the work of developing young party members. In recent years, many young party members of the 9x generation have become typical and pioneering nuclei in implementing socio-economic development movements.

Having done many things for the village, but Mr. Gia Ba Gau thinks that these are just natural things that a son of Pha Khao does for his homeland. His biggest wish now, as well as the villagers', is that Pha Khao will soon have a national power grid, so that the people can have better conditions for economic development.

"Lighting" the passion for national culture

Photo: Luong Nga

Born and raised in Na Cong village, Chau Hoan commune, Quy Chau district, since the age of 12, Mr. Truong Van Thong (born in 1958) was taught by his father and grandfather the ability to play musical instruments and folk songs of the Thai ethnic group skillfully and skillfully. Along with that, he also kept in mind the traditional rituals and offerings that were only given to the main male line and used them for local festivals.

For decades, the people of Chau Hoan commune have been calling him the “artisan” of the village. This respectful way of calling him comes from the fact that this man is always enthusiastic and passionate about preserving the national cultural identity, and despite many difficulties, he has not “cooled down” on the journey of passing on those good cultural values ​​to the younger generation.

Not only during festivals, but also at many times of the year, Mr. Thong's stilt house is always filled with singing and panpipes. He gathers children from nearby and faraway villages, teaches them how to sing nhuon and xuoi, and shows them how to make panpipes...

He said that children now have phones, televisions, and the internet, so at first learning to sing was very tiring, but gradually, they have come to feel the beauty of their ethnic culture. “It would be very sad if Thai people did not know how to sing nhuon or xuoi. Not many young people today know and love ethnic culture. To preserve and promote traditional cultural identity, there needs to be more practical policies,” Mr. Truong Van Thong shared.

"Support" of the Turkish people

In Hamlet 5, Nghia Tien Commune, Thai Hoa Town, Ms. Ho Thi Luat - Deputy Secretary of the Party Cell, Hamlet Chief and Head of the Farmers' Association is known as a typical example of "talking and doing", contributing to changing the thinking and working style of the Tho ethnic people here.

In the middle of a fruit-laden grapefruit garden entering its third harvest, Ms. Luat said that her family has boldly converted 2.5 hectares of ineffective agricultural production to growing Quang Tien pink grapefruit and cultivating rubber trees. Up to now, the model has brought in an income of about 90 million VND/year.

Photo: Thanh Quynh

After the success of the Deputy Party Secretary, many young party members and people in the village learned and developed the model, "transforming" nearly ten hectares of hilly land into a fruit farm for sustainable income.

From here, the movement to reclaim barren land and hills was implemented synchronously by the people. Ms. Ho Thi Luat also mobilized 105 households in the hamlet to participate in short-term vocational training classes such as beekeeping, chicken farming, veterinary medicine... Thanks to that, the lives of the people in hamlet 5 have improved day by day.

When life gradually escaped poverty, she stood up to mobilize people to join hands and unite to build new rural areas. Together with the Party Committee, she went to each household to propagate and encourage people to donate land to open roads, collect waste, dredge canals, and clean up villages to preserve a green, clean, and beautiful environment.

The female Deputy Secretary of the Party Cell, who is trusted by the people and considered a “support” in these grassroots movements, expressed her hope: Currently, most of the heads of Party cells and villages are elderly people, lacking the participation of the younger generation. Therefore, she hopes that the Party, State and local authorities will have more policies to attract young people and strengthen the fighting strength of grassroots Party organizations.

"Leader" in La Ngan

For more than 10 years as Secretary of the La Ngan village Party Cell, Chieu Luu commune, Ky Son district, Mr. Moong Bien Phong has devoted all his heart and soul to helping 142 Khmu households in La Ngan rise up to build a new life.

Photo: Thanh Quynh

Fully aware of the responsibility of a prestigious person in the community, Mr. Moong Bien Phong tries to propagate and encourage people to work hard and apply agricultural extension models supported by the State to improve their lives. In particular, he is a pioneer in eliminating backward customs, encouraging his children to study, not letting them be uneducated, illiterate and then being taken advantage of and deceived by bad people.

Economically, he always took the lead in reclaiming land in Bai Phang and Khe Tieu areas to build a farm to raise more than 10 buffaloes and cows and to bring in valuable fruit trees and agricultural crops for cultivation.

When the model was successful, he actively shared with the people what he knew and understood. That contributed to strengthening the people's confidence and encouraging their proactive spirit in economic development.

Thanks to that, La Ngan's appearance is increasingly improving. Currently, the whole village has more than 40 households protecting and raising more than 100 hectares of forest. On average, each household raises 3-5 cattle and has more than 20 hectares of forestry trees. On average, each year, the village reduces the number of poor households by 5-10, and over 20 households become well-off.

“Leaders” in La Ngan said that raising awareness and developing the economy are the “keys” to sustainable poverty reduction. “People want to be guided, supported, and have access to more loans to have the motivation to expand production and livestock farming.”

Phuoc Anh - Thanh Quynh