"Smart Village" in Nam Tan

*In front of the stalls from pharmaceuticals, household goods, groceries to food items, vegetables and fruits... most of them have QR code scanning boards.*

Modern, civilized appearance

We came to Dot Ha village on a day at the end of the year, and it was easy to see that the rural appearance here is constantly changing, and the infrastructure is developing.

The village has 272 households with more than 1,070 people, with advantages in service business, many households open shops. A few months ago, Ms. Nguyen Thi Quy had her children and grandchildren make a QR code scanning board to display on the shelves for convenient buying and selling. Having been in business for more than ten years, Ms. Quy never thought that one day, with just a few "swiping" and "clicking" operations on the phone, customers could easily pay for their purchases.

*The appearance of Dot Ha village is increasingly spacious and modern.*

What surprised me was that not only Mrs. Quy’s shop, but also in front of the stalls of pharmaceuticals, household goods, groceries, food, vegetables, fruits, etc., most of them have QR code scanning boards. Instead of using cash, customers can just scan the code via phone transfer to pay.

Looking down from the Kinh Thay River dike are the fish cages that bring in a large income for the local people. These fish cages are equipped with surveillance cameras, lighting, and many types of equipment such as oxygen aerators that can be controlled remotely via smartphone.

*The fish cages are equipped with surveillance cameras and lighting. Photo: Thanh Chung*

Sharing about the modern, civilized countryside today, Mr. Bui Van Thom, Party Cell Secretary, Head of Dot Ha Village proudly said: "Those are just a few of the many positive changes of the smart village". Then Mr. Thom opened his phone, showing us the situation of the village through a system of 16 surveillance cameras installed on the main road, the entrance and exit points of the alleys, and the center of the village. This camera system is integrated with the commune's security management system, contributing to ensuring security, order, and safety of the village. Thanks to this utility, no matter where he sits, Mr. Thom can still monitor the activities of the hamlets in the village.

To install these cameras, Dot Ha village mobilized social resources with a total cost of over 20 million VND. In addition, free wifi was installed at the village cultural center to serve meetings and meet the information needs of the people; and sports equipment was installed with a total value of nearly 30 million VND.

*Many households in Dot Ha village apply information technology to trace the origin of fish. Photo: Thanh Chung*

The government is determined, the people are united

Recalling the first months of building the "smart village", Mr. Thom said that at that time (April 2022), there were advantages but also many difficulties. The requirements of the criteria were unprecedented, not only new to the people but also to the village cadres. The difficulty was that not everyone here had a smartphone and knew how to apply software related to information technology, especially the elderly. The construction of the model had no financial support, so it was necessary to find socialized sources. To gradually remove those "bottlenecks", the village established a community digital technology team consisting of 18 members, including heads of associations, organizations, military and civilian officials, and some students who were knowledgeable about information technology. Without specialized training, the members both guided and helped the people and self-studied, improved, and updated their knowledge. They worked tirelessly to guide people in using social networking platforms and making payments for electricity and water, shopping online, using online public services, etc. Thanks to good propaganda work, people have understood the importance of building a “smart village” model. Many people have bought smartphones instead of regular phones.

*The community digital technology team regularly organizes sessions to guide people on how to use the software (photo provided by the facility)*

Dot Ha village has established Zalo groups such as Smart Village, Security and Order, Environmental Sanitation, Agriculture and Rural Development, Waste Classification, etc. Each of these groups has 200-300 participants. Previously, whenever there was a meeting or a matter related to the village, the village cadres had to notify each person attending the meeting, but now the content and time of the meeting only need to be "pushed" onto Zalo. In addition, the schedule for planting, spraying pesticides, vaccinating livestock and poultry, etc. is also updated. The establishment of the group has helped the village cadres to operate online, connecting the village cadres with the people, receiving feedback from the people, contributing to the timely and smooth implementation of the common tasks of the village.

Vice Chairman of Nam Tan Commune People's Committee Trinh Dai Duong said that with the high determination of the Party Committee and authorities from the commune to the village, consensus and unanimity among the people have been created and there have been worthy achievements. The construction of a "smart village" in Dot Ha has helped Nam Tan complete the criteria for building a model new rural area.

Dot Ha village has 112 households installing surveillance cameras at home (accounting for 41.1%). The village has fiber optic broadband infrastructure covering 100% of households. The whole village has 196 households installing internet connection, 595 out of 620 people of working age use smart mobile phones and 4G mobile network...

HUYEN TRANG

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