Support for coastal villagers

While fixing the net to prepare for the next early morning trip, Mr. Nguyen Lanh, a fisherman in Long Thuy village (Binh Kien ward), confided: “We make a living from the sea. In recent years, thanks to access to policy credit capital, my family has had money to invest in buying fishing nets and making fish sauce. Thanks to that, our life is stable, without having to run around borrowing from outside with high interest rates. In the future, when I have paid off all my debts, I hope the bank will increase the loan amount to invest in upgrading the boat and purchasing more modern fishing gear. Because every time the boat breaks down or lacks a net, it is considered to be stuck on the shore.”

Disbursing capital to coastal residents at Hoa Hiep Nam transaction point (Hoa Hiep ward).

Also in Long Thuy village, Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhi is one of the households that has effectively utilized policy credit capital. Having been involved in the fish sauce making business for over 30 years, Ms. Nhi is currently the owner of a small business specializing in processing various types of fish sauce such as fermented fish sauce, shrimp paste, shrimp paste, squid paste, anchovy paste, etc. Her products are distributed to many places in and outside the province. The main source of raw materials is the family's own fishing from a small boat anchored in front of the house.

“Recently, I received a loan of 50 million VND from the Social Policy Bank to continue investing in making fish sauce. Before that, when life was difficult, my family borrowed 10 million VND, then gradually increased it to 20-30 million VND from policy credit capital to develop the economy . Thanks to the capital, I invested in more tools, expanded the processing workshop, and hired more workers. The monthly revenue from selling fish sauce, after deducting expenses, still has a portion left over to take care of my children's education and reinvestment," Ms. Nhi said happily.

Long Thuy village currently has more than 930 households, most of whom make a living from fishing or traditional occupations related to the sea such as aquaculture, net weaving, fish sauce making, etc. Thanks to access to favorable policy capital, many households have now escaped poverty and become well-off. “Although the amount of money each household can borrow is not large, it is very practical for those working in the sea. During the rough sea season, when boats are stranded on the shore, people need to repair nets, repair boats, and buy more oil, this capital is like a “lifebuoy”. During favorable fishing seasons, additional investment capital can be used to increase production,” said Mr. Nguyen Tan Duc, Head of the Front Committee and head of the Long Thuy village savings and loan group.

Not only Long Thuy fishing village, many households borrowing from other fishing villages in the Eastern Dak Lak region also benefited from policy capital to do better business. According to Ms. Tran Thi Thuan, head of the savings and loan group in Phu Lac quarter (Hoa Hiep ward), households borrowing from coastal areas are mainly fishermen. The capital from the Social Policy Bank helps people to be proactive in preparing for fishing trips, no longer having to borrow money or buy fishing gear on credit as before. Thanks to this, many households have been able to maintain their jobs and have stable incomes year after year. The most important thing is that people use the capital for the right purpose, pay interest in full, and create trust with the bank and the lending group itself.

According to Ms. Dang Thi Au, Deputy Director of the Dak Lak Provincial Social Policy Bank Branch and Director of the Phu Yen Social Policy Bank Transaction Office, in the past 3 years, the unit has disbursed more than 473 billion VND to 13,884 households. Of which, loans to poor, near-poor and newly escaped poverty households are more than 38.6 billion VND with 1,186 loans. This capital source has actively contributed to reducing the poverty rate in the area from 1.1% in 2023 to 0.57% in 2025.

As for households working in the sea, Ms. Au said that the Social Policy Bank always pays attention to surveying actual seasonal needs, closely coordinating with localities to promptly supplement capital sources, prioritizing households with effective business plans. “We identify coastal people as one of the groups that need regular access to capital. Whenever the sea is rough for a long time and boats are stranded on the shore, policy capital is the "lifebuoy" for them to maintain their livelihoods and not have production interrupted,” Ms. Au said.

Mr. Nguyen Lanh in Long Thuy village (Binh Kien ward) fixes the net to prepare to go out to sea.

To continue accompanying people in the coming period, the Dak Lak Provincial Branch of the Bank for Social Policies has built a credit development strategy in a flexible, in-depth and effective manner. Specifically, the unit coordinates with local socio-political organizations to conduct surveys on loan needs, compile a list of households in need of support, prioritizing poor and near-poor households, and workers affected by natural disasters and weather. At the same time, it strengthens the dissemination of preferential credit policies to the people in many forms.

In addition, the Dak Lak Provincial Social Policy Bank Branch also advised local Party committees and authorities to effectively implement policy credit directives, promote the effectiveness of commune transaction points according to the motto "Transaction at home, disbursement at the commune", saving costs and time for borrowers, contributing to better serving the legitimate needs of the people.

“We identify that promoting the effectiveness of policy credit capital is a long-term and sustainable task. Each successful loan household is a step forward in poverty reduction and improving people’s quality of life. Therefore, we will continue to accompany, understand and serve people with the most dedicated spirit,” Ms. Au affirmed.

Le Hao

Source: https://baodaklak.vn/kinh-te/202507/tiep-suc-cho-nguoi-dan-lang-bien-2c11640/