Policy credit - humane policy awakens vitality of the rocky plateau (Part 2)

10 years is a long journey for a person to change, for a village to escape poverty and become rich. During those 10 years, the policy capital under Directive No. 40-CT/TW has supported the ethnic people of Ha Giang province to not only change their living conditions, but also help change their awareness and thinking. That is the humane policy of the Party and State, which is being bridged to the people by the pink-shirted cadres.

Give opportunity, give love

Mr. Hoang Van Tung, an officer of the Social Policy Bank of Yen Minh district, is a Giay ethnic person, living in Dong Minh commune, Yen Minh district, Ha Giang province. Born and raised in the mountains and forests, he has been a "state official" for 40 years. For decades, he has devoted himself to bringing every penny of policy capital back to the people in the village and commune to have the opportunity to escape poverty and develop the economy. Therefore, more than anyone else, Mr. Tung clearly sees every change every day in his hometown. “Every time I personally hand over each policy capital to my neighbors, I feel both happy and secretly hopeful, and always feel confident. Thousands of people in the commune are my brothers and relatives, even though they are in the most remote and difficult areas of the commune, they all benefit and overcome to develop their household economy and grow crops and raise livestock. Although I am only a bridge between the bank and the people, I feel proud that I have contributed a part to my homeland,” Tung confided. As someone who understands the customs and practices of the people, he coordinates with the group leaders and prestigious people to go to each household to guide people on how to do business, encourage them to appreciate each capital, appreciate the opportunity given, and use the capital effectively. When facing difficulties, such as severe cold, frost... affecting crops and livestock, he and his neighbors - his parents, brothers and relatives - join hands to solve them. He brings the knowledge he has learned, along with experience, especially his sense of responsibility and loving heart to share and encourage people to overcome difficulties, rise up to escape poverty, and create opportunities for education and work for ethnic people. In the commune, he has become an example for the younger generation to follow and learn from. His son, following his father's example, is also a social policy bank officer in pink, and is following his father's footsteps every day to sow capital on every rocky hill, from which he reaps the fruits of life...

Staff of the People's Credit Fund guide people to borrow capital

Also born and raised in Ha Giang, Ms. Pham Thi Hoa - Deputy Director of the Ha Giang branch of the Social Policy Bank has been with the Social Policy Bank for 22 years. She said that in the early days, when policy capital came to ethnic people, their concept of financial access was almost zero. They did not even recognize the face of money, especially high-denomination money. "There was a Mong man in Phu Cao who borrowed 5 million VND, and he was so flustered that he could not count it. He fondled each coin as if it were something precious, afraid of losing it, and even did not believe that he had that much money.

To “prove” the value of the money he borrowed, the customer went to the market, ate… 2 bowls of pho at once. Still not really believing that he had money, this customer also went to get 2 gold teeth, and every day took out a mirror to look at himself to remind himself that he really had money,” Ms. Hoa recalled the “laughing-out-loud” story above. At that time, being young and inexperienced, she was very surprised by the customer’s behavior. Therefore, she went to live with the customer’s family, confided in them to understand their thoughts, then went with the customer to buy a breeding buffalo, built a barn to raise them. “The good thing is that the ethnic people love and respect them very much, and listen to the cadres, so they put all their efforts into taking care of the buffalo. Just 1 year later, the first calf was born, and 5 years later, the customer's family "broke even", had 5 more buffaloes, and even "earned" 2 bowls of pho and 2 gold teeth", Ms. Hoa shared. Since then, the policy capital has helped the customer's family have less difficulty in life, then, the customer's son continued to borrow capital from the Social Policy Bank and now the family's life is warm and comfortable.

For Ms. Hoa, 22 years of bringing capital to the mountains, not only bringing money, she and the staff of the Social Policy Bank also brought love and care to the people. That dedication and love has helped the ethnic people from the first days of confusion, accessing finance is now very good. Before, Mong women did not have any voice or role in the house, everything was decided by the men. That is why there is a story of a man getting drunk and lying on the road, his wife holding an umbrella and watching him all day. But now, Mong women are very confident, have a voice, and have begun to manage the economy. Being financially conscious, Mong men also drink less, they begin to pay attention to their children and their education. At the market, the image of a father taking his child to buy books, clothes, and pens is no longer strange.

Ms. Pham Thi Hoa - Deputy Director of the Social Policy Bank branch in Ha Giang province is talking with people.

“The capital has helped the “poor core” area of ​​Ha Giang change dramatically, like turning a new page. Therefore, the staff of the Social Policy Bank are very loved by the people, who consider them as family members. As a Ha Giang native, born and raised in this land, seeing that change is seeing happiness and feeling more proud and loving,” Ms. Hoa excitedly shared.

Bringing the mountains and forests to catch up with the lowlands

According to the Summary of 10 years of implementing Directive No. 40-CT/TW, dated November 22, 2014 of the Secretariat on strengthening the Party's leadership over social policy credit of Ha Giang Provincial Party Committee, currently the province is implementing over 19 policy credit programs. In 10 years of implementing Directive No. 40-CT/TW, the loan turnover reached 10,586 billion VND, with 282,952 borrowers; debt collection turnover reached 6,882 billion VND, equal to 65% of loan turnover. By October 31, 2024, the total outstanding debt of policy credit programs reached VND 5,307.6 billion, an increase of VND 3,480.6 billion compared to 2014, with 93,737 policy beneficiaries still having outstanding debt, the average outstanding debt per household reached VND 56.6 million, an increase of VND 37.5 million compared to 2014. Outstanding debt is concentrated in a number of programs such as: Credit program for poor households; Credit program for near-poor households... Credit capital has helped over 129,000 borrowers overcome the poverty threshold; 7,664 students have received loans to study; attracted and created jobs for more than 29,240 workers; built 57,163 clean water and rural environmental sanitation works that meet standards and 1,623 houses for poor households and social housing; 55,678 subjects in difficult areas have been able to borrow capital for production, business, and income increase to improve their lives and gradually escape poverty. Policy credit capital has contributed to reducing the poverty rate in the whole province. In the period 2016-2021, the poverty rate decreased by 25.11% (from 43.65 to 18.54%). In the period 2022-2023, the poverty rate decreased by 10.96% (from 42.08% to 31.12%).

A transaction session of NHCSH in Sa Phin commune, Dong Van district (Ha Giang)

10 years of implementing Directive No. 40-CT/TW has profoundly changed the awareness and actions of Party committees, authorities and socio-political organizations in promoting the implementation of social credit. Not only the entire local government has participated in helping poor households and policy beneficiaries organize production and business effectively to escape poverty sustainably, the province has directed the VBSP and socio-political organizations to coordinate with functional agencies to organize training, transfer scientific and technical advances, vocational training, guide effective practices, and integrate the VBSP loan program with local socio-economic development programs and goals.

And, the results achieved are the clearest evidence for the Party's humane policy. Typical examples, changes in people's meals and sleep show the effectiveness of each policy capital when put into practice. Policy capital not only supports many people to escape poverty, but also sows in them faith, hope and the will to rise up. With the motto "Understanding the people's hearts, serving wholeheartedly", always responsible, listening to the aspirations of the poor and other policy subjects, the staff of the Social Policy Bank in pink shirts have sown blooming seeds on the rocky plateau, awakening life from the most difficult and arduous places, helping the "poor core" of Ha Giang escape poverty. That is the way to bring light to the village, eliminate poverty and darkness, and bring the mountains and forests to catch up with the lowlands...

Source: https://thoibaonganhang.vn/tin-dung-chinh-sach-chu-truong-nhan-van-danh-thuc-suc-song-mien-cao-nguyen-da-bai-2-159202.html