15:14, 07/09/2023
BHG - I returned to the rubber plantations of Ha Giang province during the latex harvesting season. After nearly four years, since the first rubber trees were planted and yielded latex (in 2019), there are new joys to be found.
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| Workers harvesting latex from rubber trees in Yen Ha commune (Quang Binh district). |
Rubber trees were replanted in Ha Giang in 2009 in three districts: Bac Quang, Quang Binh, and Vi Xuyen, covering an area of 1,537 hectares. By 2019, the first rubber trees began yielding latex. Rubber trees planted in Ha Giang started yielding latex two years earlier than the technically recommended timeframe. Despite this earlier yield, the latex production and quality of rubber trees grown in Ha Giang are in no way inferior to domestically grown rubber trees managed by the Vietnam Rubber Group. According to Do Anh Minh, Director of Ha Giang Rubber Joint Stock Company, latex production is steadily increasing year by year. In 2022, the company harvested over 500 tons of latex; this year, the Vietnam Rubber Group has set a target of over 800 tons. By mid-August, the harvested latex had reached nearly 600 tons. Ha Giang Rubber Joint Stock Company currently provides employment for 220 workers in the province. All employees working at the company are fully covered by health insurance and social insurance. The average income of employees ranges from 5 to 6.5 million VND per person per month. In the last months of the year, when the trees yield higher latex production, latex tappers can earn up to 20-22 million VND per person per month.
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| Rubber tappers working in Tan Dien village, Kim Ngoc commune (Bac Quang). |
Returning to Tan Dien village, Kim Ngoc commune (Bac Quang district) during the rubber tapping season, I was greeted with a cheerful handshake by Mr. Nguyen Van Thu, the team leader: "It's been 14 years since I started working with rubber trees in this village. I only have 6 more years until my pension, you know! The average income during the tapping season for the whole team ranges from 6 to 9 million VND per person per month. During peak months when the trees yield a lot of latex, the income of a tapper can reach 15 to 18 million VND per person per month (depending on how diligently they work)." Tan Dien village has 172 hectares of rubber trees, with 32 workers involved in caring for and tapping them. Of these, 14 villagers contributed land as shares to plant rubber trees. The remaining workers are mostly married couples from Xin Man and Hoang Su Phi districts.
Mr. Thào Seo Lao openly shared that in June, the month with the least latex yield for him and his wife, they still earned 24 million VND. From July to the end of November each year, they consistently earn around 36-42 million VND per month. Besides tapping and collecting latex, Mr. Lao and his wife also regularly care for nearly 7 hectares of rubber trees to supplement their income. The company pays them an additional 175,000-300,000 VND per hectare for clearing and maintaining the forest.
Visiting Yen Ha commune, Quang Binh district, a large rubber plantation area of Ha Giang Rubber Joint Stock Company, Mr. Pham Viet Linh, the team leader, said: Yen Ha currently has over 115 hectares of rubber trees; the number of workers involved in tapping and caring for the trees is 14. The average annual income per worker ranges from 5.5 to 6 million VND/person/month, equivalent to 70 million VND/person/year. All work from caring for the trees to tapping and collecting latex is done on a piecework basis. Clearing and caring for the trees costs 170,000 - 300,000 VND/hectare. The harvesting cost from tapping latex ranges from 450,000 to 550,000 VND/quintal. The Secretary of the Yen Ha Commune Party Committee, Hoang Van Dieu, commented: Rubber trees planted in Yen Ha are gradually changing the mindset of farmers in a positive direction. A local resident involved in caring for and tapping rubber trees receives an average salary of over 5 million VND per month. During the peak latex production period from July to the end of November, workers earn between 9 and 12 million VND per person per month from tapping. Currently, the increasing annual latex yield from rubber trees is a positive sign for businesses and local workers.
Observations in areas where people contributed land as shares in rubber plantations show that people who contributed land as shares and then worked as rubber plantation workers have successfully solved the economic problems, creating jobs, providing stable and sustainable income.
Text and photos: NGUYEN HUNG
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