Escape poverty by 'thinking first, acting later'

Escape poverty by changing mindset

During the harsh sunny days of the heat wave at the end of May, the family members of Mr. Va Chu Rua, born in 1974, in Nam Can village and the soldiers of Nam Can Border Post, Nam Can commune (Ky Son) were still working hard in the sun to sow seeds in preparation for the new rice crop.

Mr. Rua said that he had lived in poverty for more than half of his life, because in the past, following the Mong people's customs, he only knew how to grow upland rice. In recent years, thanks to guidance from border guards on how to produce rice, he has escaped poverty.

Mr. Va Chu Rua and officers of Nam Can Border Guard Station sow rice for the 2023 crop season. Photo: PV

According to Lieutenant Colonel Ho Manh Hung - Political Commissar of Nam Can Border Guard Station, Mr. Va Chu Rua is one of 5 households selected by the unit to support economic development by giving seeds, animals and technical guidance on caring for plants and animals.

The unit met with him and his family to propagate and mobilize to change the perception of economic development, application of science and technology. Nam Can Border Guard Station invested in fish, chickens, fruit trees, fertilizers, etc. to give to Mr. Rua's family, the total cost of buying trees and animals was about 7 million VND and hundreds of working days.

In addition, the station also supported Mr. Rua to dig two 200 m fish ponds.²; consulting and supporting the purchase of mini plows to overcome the situation of narrow terraced fields that cannot be plowed by buffalo; then improving water sources, expanding 0.5 hectares of wet rice cultivation.

The Provincial Women's Union coordinated with the Border Guard Command to give breeding cows to people in Nam Can commune. Photo: PV

By doing this, the green-uniformed soldiers at the Nam Can border have gradually changed the awareness of many other people, helping them realize that if they want to escape poverty, their thinking must change, only then will they know what to do and what not to do.

Thanks to the border guards, he understood new ways of doing things, knew how to cultivate according to the seasons, applied science and technology to rice cultivation, combined livestock and poultry farming with forest garden improvement, creating a comprehensive and diverse economic development.

From a family that only relied on 0.3 hectares of terraced fields for a living, now Mr. Rua's family has not only 0.75 hectares of rice production per year, with an average yield of 65 bags per crop, double the previous yield of only 30 to 35 bags.

“The upcoming rice harvest will certainly increase even more because I have received support from border guards to plant new rice varieties. My livestock herd now has 5 buffaloes, 5 cows, and over 100 poultry, a 3-fold increase compared to 2020. From 2018 to now, the average annual income has increased from 5 to 7 million VND, and the income in 2023 is expected to be over 50 million VND,” Mr. Va Chu Rua proudly said.

Select and replicate appropriate support methods

In the border commune of Tam Hop, Tuong Duong district, with high terrain and steep hills not suitable for rice cultivation, but with advantages convenient for livestock farming, Tam Hop Border Guard Station chose to help people with breeding animals to escape poverty.

The goat farming model of Mrs. Ha Thi Loan's household has been effective thanks to the support from the "Share 50" model. Photo: Khanh Ly

With a barn holding more than 20 goats located right next to the main road through Vang Mon village, Tam Hop commune, Ms. Ha Thi Loan feeds the goats and "boasts" about how her family used to be poor and had no money, but now has escaped poverty thanks to the breeding goats and pigs of the Tam Hop Border Guard Station. In early 2022, she was "lent" 3 pigs and 6 goats by border guards and the commune People's Committee, and then was instructed on how to care for and breed them. Thanks to that, her family's herd of goats now has 21.

Major Ha Huy Thien - Deputy Political Commissar of Tam Hop Border Guard Station said that from the beginning of 2022, the station will deploy the model "Sharing 50" and "Accompanying farmers to overcome difficulties and escape poverty".

The "accompanying" method is implemented by the Station coordinating with the commune government and the 9th Youth Volunteer Corps to use livestock and plant varieties from the unit's labor and production activities to "lend" to the people without interest. For breeding pigs, the "loan" period is about 15-18 months, for breeding goats, it is from 18-24 months.

The unit and the family agree that after the livestock reproduces, the family will return the number of piglets that the unit has supported, so that the unit can use this "capital" to transfer to other households to "borrow". This method both encourages people to motivate each other to make efforts in raising and producing livestock, and creates a source of "working capital" and continuously develops from an initial investment. From the "capital" of 20 pigs "lent" to 5 households in early 2022, by May 2023, that "capital" has increased by 42 pigs and transferred to other households to strive to eliminate poverty.

Tam Hop Border Guard Station officers discussed with Pha Lom village officers about helping people develop the economy. Photo: Hoai Thu

The “Share 50” model is implemented in the way that the station officers invest money to buy livestock and give it to the people to take care of. Then the initial profit is “split in half”, half is enjoyed by the family, the other half is returned to the unit to continue to transfer to other poor households. Currently, this model is being implemented at Mrs. Ha Thi Loan’s household. The goats that Mrs. Loan shared have given birth to 7 more goats. In the near future, these goats will be transferred to other poor households to raise.

Major Ha Huy Thien said that after more than 1 year of implementing the 2 models that the unit and the Commune People's Committee chose to deploy, they have shown good effectiveness. Therefore, the station will continue to maintain and expand the scale of support.

The initial results in Tam Hop commune also show that people are very enthusiastic about this method when the people who are helped can help others. They help each other to get rid of the mindset of waiting and relying on others, and help each other to do business effectively and practically.