Highland commune strives to reach new rural destination

After more than 10 years of implementing the National Target Program on New Rural Construction (NTM), by the end of 2020, many localities in the province have started the roadmap for building advanced NTM, but up to now, many highland communes of Ham Thuan Bac district are still facing many difficulties in striving to reach the NTM finish line.

Many highland communes struggle to escape poverty and reach the new rural destination

Dong Giang, Dong Tien, La Da are communes of ethnic minorities, people mainly live on agriculture, the poverty rate is high. After more than 10 years of implementing the Program, despite many efforts and some positive results, there is still no commune reaching the NTM finish line.

According to statistics, up to now, no commune in the 3 localities has met all 19 criteria to reach the NTM finish line in the spirit of the National Target Program on New Rural Construction. Specifically, Dong Tien has met 15/19 criteria, Dong Giang 14/19 criteria, La Da 12/19 criteria. The remaining criteria are difficult criteria, including criteria that make the communes struggle to reach the finish line, which are criteria 10, 11, 13 on income, multidimensional poverty; production organization and rural economic development.

Highlanders carry bamboo shoots after a day of going to the forest to pick bamboo shoots to improve their family's life.

Chairman of Dong Tien Commune People's Committee K'Van Goa said that we can strive to achieve other criteria, but some criteria are difficult, especially criteria 10, 11, 13. With criterion 10, in 2023, the regulation is 47 million VND/person/year to achieve the criterion. In 2022, the regulation is 44 million VND/person/year, but adding up all the income in the family, it is only 40 million VND/person/year, this year the regulation is higher, it is difficult for the commune. While the weather is increasingly extreme, causing diseases, good harvests, low prices, bad harvests, high prices..., high prices of fertilizers, pesticides, seedlings. With criterion 13, which stipulates that there must be a production linkage model associated with the consumption of key products to ensure sustainability, traceability of the origin of the commune's key products associated with the construction of raw material areas and VietGap certification and equivalent... the commune does not have enough resources.

A highland child helps his mother dry beans in the midday sun.

Dong Giang and La Da are in a similar situation. Chairman of Dong Giang Commune People's Committee K' Van Tien shared that the commune is most worried about criterion number 10. Last year, the average income per capita was only about 38 million VND/person/year, not equal to Dong Tien people, so how can it meet the criterion? People's lives are still difficult, they only rely on corn and beans of all kinds, but in recent years, pests and diseases; especially cashew and rubber have lost their value. The commune wants to escape poverty but the living standards of the people are still low, it is very difficult to meet the NTM standards.

Based on the above reality, communes are struggling to reach the NTM finish line with the feeling of not knowing when they will arrive, while having to maintain the achieved criteria to raise the standards and find ways to resolve the unachieved criteria. Therefore, there needs to be high determination and efforts from local officials, leaders and people in the commune, along with the support of district and provincial levels and sectors. This is in line with the National Target Program for Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas for the 2021-2030 period, which is currently implementing Phase I (2021-2025).

Chairman of Dong Giang Commune People's Committee K' Van Tien said: "We are trying to promote the implementation of socio-economic development and construction programs in the commune. At the same time, we always check and urge to accelerate the progress of the National Target Program on New Rural Construction. Regularly and effectively implement the set plan, especially the criteria registered for implementation during the year. At the same time, we focus on maintaining the achieved criteria, associated with promoting the emulation movement "Joining hands and hearts to build new rural areas" and the Campaign "All people unite to build new rural areas and civilized urban areas".

Similarly, Dong Tien is promoting this program by focusing on the criteria that have not been met. According to Mr. K' Van Goa - Chairman of Dong Tien Commune People's Committee: to achieve the remaining criteria, the Commune People's Committee is building a direction to expand market connections, link chains with businesses, focusing on the role of cooperatives. Redefine the criteria, see which criteria are feasible, then prioritize budget capital first, then other criteria. "For poor households, divide them into groups of support beneficiaries, regularly propagate to the people the awareness of self-reliance, self-reliance to rise up to build their lives, contribute to sustainable poverty reduction, and build a new face for the locality", Mr. K' Van Goa added.

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