Happy shore
This return to Phan Dung is very different from what we imagined years ago. About 15 years ago, to get to Phan Dung, we had to go through a long, bumpy, difficult, and dangerous journey... because this is the only route connecting the lowland communes to the Phan Dung highlands, serving the trade, production, and work of the local people. In our memories, every time we went to the Phan Dung highlands, we had to cross the spillway to reach the commune. Every rainy season, water from the upstream poured down like a waterfall, flowing rapidly through the spillway, causing traffic to be cut off, and the lives of the local people faced many difficulties and dangers. Perhaps during our time as journalists, the two words "Phan Dung" brought many unforgettable impressions and emotions, because we had "heart-stopping" experiences when crossing the spillway in the rainy season.
As Mr. Mang Hanh - Vice Chairman of Phan Dung Commune People's Committee shared: "In previous years, trading through the spillway depended on the water, especially during the rainy season, making it very difficult for people to travel across the spillway. At that time, at this spillway section, there was often an "army" carrying motorbikes across the spillway, every 4 people carrying a motorbike earned 40,000 VND, because the water flowed so fast that no one dared to drive through. Some local people were reckless, impatient to go home, ran across the spillway and were swept away by the water. Not only that, there were cases where people went to the emergency room, women in urgent labor but encountered floodwaters and could not cross, which was very dangerous to their lives". In those urgent cases, people had to hire trucks and tractors to carry people and vehicles to the other side to go downstream for timely emergency care. Therefore, on this return to the highlands, we crossed the spillway on a solid bridge that was just completed in early 2025, in excitement and joy with the people. The bridge over Phan Dung spillway put into operation not only facilitates people's travel, production, and trade, but also brings hope for a bright future in this highland area.
Through the winding pass, Phan Dung slowly appeared before our eyes with a truly peaceful scene of the mountainous region. There were not many spacious, modern tiled-roof houses, but the small, pretty, solid houses nestled among the rows of trees along the road of the ethnic people here showed that life was fresher and warmer. Passing through the "rice fields on the mountain", in the distance was the dense old forest, the irrigation canal system stretched out, bringing water to irrigate the fields, gardens for the trees to bloom and bear fruit, everywhere was green, adding to the beautiful picture of this highland region. Thanks to that, the people's lives began to improve, the socio -economy gradually developed, and the people's livelihoods were more secure.
Contract… to stick to the forest
Phan Dung is a commune with a pure ethnic group of Rac Lay and a small number of Kinh, Tay, Muong and Cham people living together. The whole commune has 240 households/1,014 people, of which the majority of households are engaged in agricultural and forestry production. Therefore, compared to the plains, the life of the people in the highlands here is still lacking. In recent years, with the policy of supporting production development and forest protection contracts, the life of the people in Phan Dung has gradually improved. In the past year, the whole commune had 41.6% of households with good and average economic conditions, the average income per capita reached about 35 million VND/person/year.
Following the survey team in Phan Dung commune on the implementation of Resolution No. 18/2022 of the Provincial People's Council on policies to support investment in production development and forest protection contracts for ethnic minority areas in the area for the period 2021-2030, we recently entered the Doc San forest protection post and were led by the contracted brothers to the field in the old Phan Dung forest. The forest is changing leaves, on the treetops, new buds are starting to appear, clusters of young green leaves after a few early rains of the season create a cool and peaceful scene. Every step we take is the rustling sound of dry leaves, of the dense dry ground cover, between the towering tree trunks standing tall in the midst of the changes of nature, as proof of the endless cycle of life.
Mr. Manh Hanh - one of the households who have been contracted for nearly 30 years in Phan Dung forest said: "Phan Dung forest is growing more and more, thanks to the good implementation of forest protection work. The lives of ethnic minorities here have also improved, increasing income thanks to the State's forest protection contract policy. If in the past, Phan Dung people lived a nomadic life, had a difficult life, lacked resources, and the poverty rate was over 40%, now thanks to the implementation of Resolution 04-NQ/TU of the Provincial Party Committee (term XI) on comprehensive development of people's lives, economy - society in ethnic minority areas, the National Target Program (Program 135) of the Government and the integration of other support policies of the State, the production and life of the people have changed significantly".
It can be seen that agricultural production in the highlands has gradually developed, poverty reduction work has been resolutely implemented when people are granted land for production, along with promoting intensive farming, increasing crops, increasing productivity with key crops such as wet rice, hybrid corn, fruit trees... Thanks to that, the poverty rate according to the multidimensional poverty standard for the period 2022 - 2025 is 76 households/236 households, by the end of 2024, it has decreased to 58/236 households. This result shows that the life of the people in the highlands of Phan Dung is "changing day by day".
In recent years, according to the records of Tuy Phong Protective Forest Management Board, the situation of deforestation for farming and illegal forest exploitation in the forest area contracted for protection in Phan Dung has decreased significantly over the years, as people's awareness of forest protection has been raised. This has contributed significantly to maintaining stability and improving forest quality in the contracted area. Ms. Thanh Thi Ky - Head of the Ethnic Minorities Committee - Binh Thuan Provincial People's Council also assessed that this is a special policy of Binh Thuan province, implemented from 2022 to present, supporting each contracted household with 300,000 VND/ha for area 1. During the implementation process, people have received full funding, partly supporting their livelihoods and improving their lives. Currently, the forest area of the whole province is quite large, of which the forest area contracted to ethnic minorities accounts for about 60% of the whole province. Since implementing the policy, monitoring shows that deforestation has decreased significantly. This result is thanks to the support of the contracted households who detected and provided timely support... Most of the contracted households are aware of their responsibility in protecting the forest and preventing forest fires. Along with that, the forest protection contract policy has contributed to increasing the income of many local households, gradually solving the difficulties of ethnic minority households in this highland commune.
Phan Dung mountains and forests are wearing a leopard skin coat, just a few more rains, the green will cover the dry hillsides, awakening life after the dry season. Trees will sprout again, dry streams will flow again and Phan Dung is still the same, silently, quietly nestled behind the mountainsides, but full of life. That image makes us think of the people of Phan Dung connecting with each other, sticking together to protect the forest, contributing to making Phan Dung forest greener. Similarly, the newly inaugurated bridge helps people from the lowlands to get closer to the highlands of Phan Dung - connecting the shore of joy.
Phan Dung Commune currently has 135 Rac Lay ethnic households participating in forest protection contracts, with an area of over 4,000 hectares under the management of Tuy Phong Protective Forest Management Board.
Source: https://baobinhthuan.com.vn/ket-noi-o-phan-dung-130736.html
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