Nam Giang Night Market - A meeting place for highland agricultural products

*Many mountain agricultural products are sold at the market. Photo: NC*

Product diversity

At dusk, right at the Nam Giang stadium (Thanh My town), hundreds of locals and tourists were present. They came here to buy mountain products, from agricultural products, cuisine to brocade and handicrafts.

While arranging her booth, Ve-Brôl girl Thi Thanh Thu (in Dac Pring commune) was busier when customers came. Experience from participating in fairs helped Thuy easily introduce each product of her village for customers to choose.

To participate in the night market, Thuy said she and local people had to travel more than 100km of mountainous terrain to transport agricultural products typical of the Ve community on the Vietnam-Laos border.

*Wild honey - a product sold quite a lot at the night market. Photo: NC*

“This is the third time the market has been held, and people bring more products than before. Most of the products are harvested from the fields, so they are very fresh and delicious. Almost every local stall has fish, smoked pork, roasted chili salt, wild honey, etc. for sale.

These are considered clean products, very typical of the Nam Giang mountainous region, favored by locals and tourists. Especially wild honey, only appears at the beginning of summer at the annual markets" - Ms. Thuy shared.

With the advantage of being the main supplier of smoked black pork products of Nam Giang, Ms. Alang Oanh - a trader of Ta Po commune said, the market attracts a lot of local people through buying and selling, exchanging goods.

Not only introducing agricultural products, the night market is also a connecting space to create outlets for typical products to reach the market, contributing to improving income for people in mountainous areas.

“Therefore, we hope to have more night markets organized, both to help promote local products to tourists and to create a source of income to help people develop their livelihoods,” said Ms. Oanh.

*The diversity of highland stalls makes it easy for locals and tourists to choose. Photo: NC*

Open the way for tourism

Taking place regularly every 3 months, the night market of the Co Tu, Ve, and Ta Rieng people always attracts special attention from the local community. Agricultural products brought from border communes follow the people to the market, surprising many visitors from far away for the first time.

By displaying rustic stalls, combined with the sincerity in the way of buying and selling, Nam Giang night market is not only a pure wholesale place, but has brought visitors a unique experience, opening the way for tourism development from the typical products of the mountain.

Having been to Nam Giang many times, Ms. Dinh Thi Bich Lien (Dai Dong commune, Dai Loc) said this time was much more interesting, because this was the first time she and her relatives experienced the vibrant and bustling night market space.

“Many agricultural products are on sale, the market leaves an impression on viewers. This place is really crowded, with a variety of products, the people are friendly and open, creating a good impression on tourists, especially tourists coming to Nam Giang for the first time during the festival season” - Ms. Lien shared.

*Tourists looking to buy mountain products. Photo: NC*

The night market of the Nam Giang highland community was opened for the first time in early 2023. Through this night market, the local government hopes to create a space for buying and selling agricultural products, gradually changing the mindset of self-sufficiency to producing goods for local people.

At the same time, we aim to build a unique tourism product from the agricultural market associated with the friendly smiles of the highland people.

According to Mr. Nguyen Dang Chuong - Vice Chairman of Nam Giang District People's Committee, the night market not only introduces and promotes OCOP products and typical agricultural products and goods of Nam Giang to the market, but also helps to strengthen trade promotion activities and develop tourism.

Many agricultural products and traditional cuisine of the Co Tu, Ve, and Ta Rieng people are sold such as bamboo rice, buffalo croissant, grilled meat, smoked pork, Ta Vac wine, cassava leaf salad, and can wine, etc. to serve locals and tourists who come to visit and shop.

“In 2024, we will integrate the night market with community tourism programs for ethnic groups in the district. The number of booths will therefore be more diverse than before.

In addition, we integrate culinary activities so that people and tourists can enjoy both cuisine and watch the festival. By doing this, we hope to create a unique highland cultural space with agricultural product trading activities associated with traditional cuisine, helping tourists and people have the opportunity to experience and enjoy the attractive rustic dishes of the local community of Nam Giang" - Mr. Chuong emphasized.

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