Nam Vi overcomes difficulties

Secretary of the Party Committee of Nam Vi commune Tran Ngoc Kien *(left)* visited and encouraged people in the commune to develop cinnamon trees.

We arrived in Nam Vi in mid-August - the peak of the Northwest rainy season. On the concrete road connecting National Highway 4H to the commune center, there were many landslides, some of which were large in volume, but they were quickly leveled to ensure traffic for the people. On both sides of the road were cassava fields, corn fields, and areas of elephant grass for raising cattle, which were green and pleasing to the eye. Talking about the socio-economic development of the commune, Chairman of the Commune People's Committee Vu Hoai Nam shared: The whole commune has 7 villages with 720 households, 4,336 people, including 3 ethnic groups: Thai, Kinh, Mong living together. People's lives are still difficult, as the poverty rate is still over 61%. The commune has only met 5/19 criteria for building new rural areas... Despite many difficulties, most of the people of Nam Vi are hard-working, diligent, and diligent in production. People take advantage of vacant land, not cultivated with corn and cassava, to grow fodder crops for livestock. When harvested, they are cut by machine for livestock to eat at home instead of relying entirely on natural grazing as before. Therefore, the livestock herd of the commune is growing. Up to now, the total livestock herd of the commune is more than 2,300; of which, 1,115 are buffaloes, 263 are cows... In addition, local people continue to cultivate over 102 hectares of wet rice, 300 hectares of upland rice, corn, cassava and other crops... Aquaculture is also a positive signal for a highland locality like Nam Vi when the total pond area is 20.88 hectares. Meanwhile, local people are continuing to expand the pond area to ensure enough food for their families and the community...

Nam Vi people are also increasingly changing their thinking and working methods, actively converting crops on the fields to industrial crops and long-term timber trees with higher economic value, such as cinnamon, doi, etc. Many households have invested their own capital and effort in many hectares of new crops.

Secretary of the Commune Party Committee Tran Ngoc Kien excitedly led us to visit the newly planted area of Doi trees in Huoi Lum village. While leading the way, Secretary of the Party Committee Tran Ngoc Kien shared: “The commune is implementing a cinnamon planting project in the villages under the National Target Program for Socio-Economic Development of Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas in 2023. The whole commune has 19 participating households with a planting area of about 32 hectares. In addition to the above program, many households also buy more seedlings to plant to expand the area with the desire to escape poverty and become rich. Like Mr. Sung Vang Say, Huoi Cha 2 village was supported to plant 1.7 hectares, but his family spent their own money to buy 2,000 more seedlings to plant. As for Mr. Sung A Ha's family that we are about to visit, although lacking the manpower to plant cinnamon, they have invested in 3 hectares of Doi trees…”.

Mr. Sung A Ha - the owner of 3 hectares of Doi trees that are growing well, is currently the Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Nam Vi Commune. True to his role as the "leader" of the commune's farmers, Mr. Ha is always a pioneer in labor production. In the conversion of crops and livestock, he does not rely on the support of the State, but invests his own capital and effort in developing crops according to the direction of the district and commune. Mr. Sung A Ha shared: "My family boldly planted 3 hectares of Doi trees for wood. Because the commune is lacking wood for use. While Doi wood is priced at about 15 million VND/m3...".

On this return, we felt that the poor commune of Nam Vi is gradually "changing its skin", infrastructure is being invested, along with changes in the thinking and working methods of the people in economic development to escape poverty. However, according to the leaders of the Party Committee and the commune government, the natural conditions and terrain of Nam Vi have steep and rugged hills, and are divided by many streams; the intellectual level of the people is uneven, and the material and spiritual life of the people is still lacking. The political security situation, social order and safety still have many unpredictable complications. While the State's investment resources for the people here are still limited, infrastructure is facing many difficulties... Therefore, in the coming time, Nam Vi commune still needs the attention and investment of all levels and sectors, to give the people here the motivation to rise up.

Source