Since joining the Agricultural and Ecotourism Cooperation of Hoa Bac Commune, Ms. Ho Thi Thanh Toa in Gian Bi Village, Hoa Bac Commune, Hoa Vang District has been busier. Ms. Toa said that recently, the number of visitors to Hoa Bac has increased, including students coming under the "Community Study Tourism" program. Therefore, the daily work of a member of the Co Tu Traditional Craft Group like her is quite difficult. On days when there are many tourists, she is busy from morning to night, participating in the culinary group, performing traditional brocade weaving, and also participating in the program introducing the unique culture of the Co Tu people.
Ms. Ho Thi Thanh Toa shared that although the work is busy, all the Co Tu women are happy because they have the opportunity to work, both increasing their income and restoring and preserving the culture of the ethnic group: “I am in the tourism team and am very happy to welcome the group. I am very honored. I can improve my knowledge and introduce the unique cultural identities of the Co Tu people so that everyone can know and introduce and promote them. From there, the number of visitors coming here to learn about our lives will increase. That way, I can increase my income, have an economy for my sisters, and at the same time, I can contribute to making my village more and more developed and prosperous.”
Previously, Ms. Dinh Thi Thanh Phuong's family in Nam Yen village, Hoa Bac commune mainly lived on rice fields and vegetable gardens, and their life was precarious. Since the development of community ecotourism, she invested in opening a homestay to both serve the needs of tourists and introduce and consume her family's agricultural products. Ms. Phuong said that thanks to tourism, her family's life has now stabilized and she has begun to have food and savings: "The tourism model here is also connected with the models of the sisters in the commune. There are many groups of guests that I also introduce to each other. For example, when Ms. Tram's cooperative has a group of guests, she also introduces them to the sisters. Since the homestay tourism model has been established, it has brought in many sources of income for the family, and the economy is more stable than before."
In order to achieve the goal of preserving indigenous values and creating community livelihoods, aiming to protect upstream forests, at the beginning of this year, the Hoa Bac Agricultural and Ecotourism Cooperative model was officially established. Ms. Do Thi Huyen Tram, Director of this Cooperative, said that although it has just started operating, the Cooperative has become a reliable support for many women. Currently, in addition to 19 official members, the Cooperative also attracts many associate members spread across 7 villages in the commune.
The cooperative has many groups, under the cooperative there are also agricultural groups, traditional craft groups, cultural and artistic groups, culinary groups, transportation, tours, routes...: "These groups mobilize a lot of women to participate. Besides their livelihood, they maintain their traditional crafts of weaving, brocade weaving, baking... and have additional income from traditional crafts. And in the Co Tu ethnic minority area, we put agriculture and forestry into the cooperative's learning and activities program. Normally, their profession already has income, now with tourism, they have more money from tourists, so they can both maintain their profession and increase the value of their profession. From there, they have more income and more respect for the profession they are preserving, and have a livelihood to focus on protecting the forest".
In Da Nang city, there are currently nearly 1,200 Co Tu people, living in Hoa Bac, Hoa Phu and Hoa Ninh communes, Hoa Vang district. In recent times, the local government has prioritized all resources to invest in and effectively exploit the potential and strengths of tourism, especially community tourism and eco-tourism. In particular, the establishment of the Hoa Bac Agricultural and Eco-tourism Cooperative not only promotes tourism development but also creates livelihoods and increases income for women, especially Co Tu women. Through the activities of the Cooperative, it has also contributed to preserving and conserving indigenous values, including traditional cultural values of the Co Tu people.
Mr. Nguyen Thuc Dung, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Hoa Vang district, Da Nang city said: "The effective exploitation of natural resources, indigenous culture, focusing on developing community ecotourism associated with agriculture, natural landscapes, biodiversity and preserving traditional culture has contributed to the development of sustainable ecotourism, creating livelihoods for people, contributing to the overall economic development of the locality".
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