Member satisfaction is our joy in our work.

The Women's Association of Khanh Cuong commune currently has 21 branches with 1,169 members. The membership rate is 87%. The majority of female members are engaged in agriculture , but some also work in handicrafts, and a portion are employed in industrial zones and other sectors.

Ms. Bui Thi Ha, Chairwoman of the Women's Association of Khanh Cuong commune, said: "From being a kindergarten teacher, in 2011 I was trusted and elected as Chairwoman of the Women's Association of the commune. Transitioning to a new field, I was quite unfamiliar with it at first. After a while, working and understanding the desires of the women, I felt attached to and loved my work, wanting to bring joy to the officials, members, and women."

Recognizing that building a strong Women's Union organization is a central and overarching task that determines the quality and effectiveness of the Union's activities, and to attract diverse groups of women, Ms. Bui Thi Ha and the Standing Committee of the Women's Union of the commune have focused on innovating Union activities, effectively utilizing information technology, the internet, and social networks in managing Union operations, meeting the cultural and artistic needs of female members, and adapting to the era of reform.

The association developed and launched the "Branch attracting 100% members" model to gather and attract members based on background, profession, interests, and age. A sports dance club was established with 40 members. Teachers were invited to provide guidance and organize evening practice sessions. The folk dance club's activities have attracted widespread support from female officials and members. To date, it has expanded to 21 folk dance clubs in 21 branches, and one Zumba club, with over 600 members participating regularly, contributing to improved health and creating a vibrant movement in the commune.

The Chairwoman of the Women's Union of Bui Thi Ha commune, along with its members, actively promotes activities on social media platforms like Zalo and Facebook; creating opportunities for women to interact, share, and exchange experiences in family care and child rearing; reflecting the thoughts and aspirations of members and providing feedback to the Women's Union of the commune and higher-level organizations. These activities contribute to providing knowledge and skills in child rearing, organizing family life, preventing social evils, supporting women in improving their health, and attracting women of various ages and professions to participate in the Union.

To facilitate the care and organization of the Association's activities, the branches have encouraged members to practice thrift and mobilized social resources from people in the hometown for the Association's activities. In particular, the "Collecting scrap materials to raise funds for the Association" model, linked with "Sorting and processing waste at source," has been a focus of the Women's Association since the end of 2020. The Women's Association held meetings to launch the emulation campaign in each branch, disseminating information, explaining the purpose and significance of the model, and guiding households in waste sorting.

Member satisfaction is our joy in our work. — Representatives of the women's association of Khanh Cuong commune participated in the Yen Khanh district sports festival.

Every Saturday, the women's association organizes the collection of recyclable materials such as plastic bottles, beer cans, and old newspapers, which families contribute to the initiative. The collected funds are tallied and publicly announced at the association every six months. The funds raised from the sale of these recyclable materials are used to visit and assist women members and children in difficult circumstances. The initiative has received strong support from many women members because collecting recyclable materials not only cleans the environment but also provides meaningful support to those in need, while simultaneously educating them about saving resources and maintaining environmental hygiene.

The Women's Association of Khanh Cuong commune also focuses on building and developing models, contributing to changing the face of the homeland. Among these, the title "A Livable Countryside" has been given to Khanh Cuong commune by many people. To achieve this recognition, in addition to the leadership of the Party Committee and local government, there has been a significant contribution from women of all walks of life in the commune.

A notable initiative is the "Clean House, Beautiful Streets Association" model, initially selecting one association as a pilot project with 10 participating households. Officials from the commune's Women's Union and the Women's Association branch leaders, in coordination with the village's Front Committee, regularly visited households to educate and guide them on how to arrange and decorate their homes and gardens neatly and scientifically, actively encouraging and motivating them to do well. They also encouraged households to conduct weekly general cleaning of village roads and alleys, plant trees and flowers, and create model gardens and flower-lined streets in residential areas.

The Women's Union of the commune also plays a bridging role, fostering a spirit of initiative and creativity, mobilizing female cadres and members to donate land, contribute labor and effort to build rural roads; participate in protecting self-managed roads; and maintain environmental sanitation. Based on the effectiveness of the pilot model, it has now been replicated in all 21 branches. To date, the entire commune has planted 28 km of tree-lined and flower-lined roads with over 900,000 Jacaranda trees, 250 Spondias trees, Bauhinia flowers, thousands of other green trees, and over 500 Bougainvillea pots placed along commune roads, village roads, and in the cultural centers of each village. Currently, 16 out of 21 villages have achieved the status of model new rural villages.

The "Household Waste Sorting and Treatment Using Probiotics" model has proven effective and has been replicated in 17 out of 21 hamlets, with over 800 households participating. When implementing the model, due to changes in household waste sorting habits and the lack of a local mechanism for processing sorted waste, the Women's Union of the commune coordinated the dissemination of information and guidance on waste sorting and treatment to its members. They also advised the Party Committee and local authorities to establish regulations for collecting only sorted waste; and mobilized funds to purchase and donate 500 waste sorting bins and containers, along with probiotics, to households.

The Women's Association of the commune also donated 200 plastic baskets for women to use when going to the market, reducing the use of plastic bags. This model has been creating awareness among people about sorting waste at home and knowing how to process and utilize organic waste to make fertilizer for crops, reducing costs in agricultural production, reducing the amount of waste released into the environment by 50-60%, saving costs and labor for the waste collection team and for the people.

Thanks to the effectiveness of the models implemented, the Women's Union has attracted an increasing number of members, building a strong organization and making significant contributions to the socio-economic development of the locality, helping Khanh Cuong commune achieve the advanced new rural commune standard in 2022. The Chairwoman of the Women's Union of Khanh Cuong commune, Bui Thi Ha, has also received many awards and recognition from the government and Women's Unions at all levels. Especially noteworthy is the trust, affection, and emulation of the members and women in the commune.

Text and photos: Huy Hoang

Source