Promoting vocational training

Reducing poverty in a sustainable way, ensuring social security policies to help people improve their quality of life, and shortening the gap between regions are the key policy set by the Party and State. This policy has also been pursued by Hoa Binh province on the basis of implementing the national target program for sustainable poverty reduction in the period of 2021 - 2025.

According to statistics in late 2001, the multidimensional poverty rate in Hoa Binh province was 26.14%. the province had 34,029 poor households, accounting for 15.49% of the total and 2,388 near-poor households, accounting for 10.65%. In 2022, the rate of multidimensional poor households in the province decreased to 22.32%. Particularly, the rate of poor households was 12.29%, down by 3.2%, and near-poor households was 10.03%, down by 0.62%. 

Through measuring the index of shortage of basic social services, it found that Hoa Binh province has over 18,800 poor households facing employment shortage; over 19,000 poor households with medical care shortage; 4,130 poor households with education shortage; nearly 16,700 poor households with housing shortage; over 18,500 poor households with clean water and environmental sanitation shortage; and nearly 11,000 poor households with shortage of information access.

In recent years, Hoa Binh province's sustainable poverty reduction work has achieved positive results, contributing to the successful implementation of its socio-economic development plans.

The implementation of poverty reduction policies has helped change the appearance of rural and mountainous areas and infrastructure, meeting the needs of production and people's livelihood. The lives of the poor have been gradually improved.

Vocational training and job creation are one of the three pillars of sustainable poverty reduction, so Hoa Binh province has focused on promoting vocational education. Through this task, the local government has helped poor people and poor households have the knowledge and skills to get jobs or create stable jobs for themselves, proactively escape poverty, and improve their quality of life.

Vocational training activities associated with on-site job creation have been promoted by localities, units, businesses as well as associations in the province.

A typical example is the embroidery facility for export of Ms. Bui Thi Lon, in Doi Boi hamlet, Sao Bay commune, Kim Boi district. The facility not only trains but also employs many local residents.

Thanks to the stable consumer market, this facility has developed well and created jobs with stable income for local people, who can work at home and earn the monthly average income of 4 - 5 million VND. Currently, this facility uses 500 workers, mainly female ones.

The Farmers' Association at all levels in Hoa Binh province has made positive contributions to vocational training activities for rural workers. In the second quarter of 2023, the Farmers' Association at all levels organized surveys of vocational training needs and coordinated with relevant agencies to organize 34 vocational training classes for 1,051 farmer members.

The province built a complex of practice facilities and dormitories for the Hoa Binh College of Economics and Technology and expanded facilities for the Hoa Binh College of Engineering and Technology.

At the same time, Hoa Binh province has launched the startup model among students of vocational education institutions and developed curricula, learning materials for these institutions as well as promote vocational training on mass media. 

The provincial authorities have organized many job fairs, employment consulting and introduction sessions for local workers; implemented a program to support overseas workers; upgraded infrastructure and information technology equipment to modernize labor market information, forming an online job trading floor and building a labor database of 10 districts and cities.

Vocational training has created great changes in the awareness of rural workers. The vocational training innovation has achieved encouraging results, with the rate of rural workers finding jobs and creating jobs for themselves reaching over 85%. 

In July 2023 alone, the province created jobs for 2,258 workers, including 89 people working abroad under contract. The authorities have supported a number of labor export businesses to recruit workers for foreign markets such as Taiwan (China), Japan and Korea.

Along with vocational training and job creation activities, Hoa Binh province's social security work has been maintained effectively. In 2022, it allocated a temporary budget of nearly 18 billion VND to support electricity bills for poor households; spent more than 254.6 billion VND to assist local students; and allocated more than 13.6 billion VND to assist more than 34,000 poor households to have a happy Tet holiday.

Awakening the will to escape poverty

Over the years, Hoa Binh province has synchronously deployed many creative and appropriate measures and methods, with a focus on doing good of propaganda, advocacy, and persuasion to fundamentally change thinking, perception, and behavior of local people, especially poor households, to urge their spirit of self-reliance, aspiration and proactive efforts to escape poverty.

Poverty reduction projects and policies have been carried out synchronously, suitably for each target group. Various resources have been mobilized to realize the poverty reduction goals.

Some typical examples include: The socio-economic development project for the communes of Hang Kia and Pa Co in Mai Chau district in the period of 2021 - 2025. Under this project, farmers are provided with seeds and input materials in order to transform the structure of crops and livestock with high economic value. They also receive free vaccines against dangerous diseases for livestock and poultry. 

Most importantly, farmers have access to capital assistance. For example, Agribank disbursed loans for economic development for 170 households totalling more than 11 billion VND in Mai Chau district. The Social Policy Bank also gave preferential loans to 383 households, amounting to more than 15 billion VND, in Mai Chau district.

Under this project, the authorities of Pa Co commune choose the most suitable plants and breeds for investment, including corn and off-season vegetables such as tomatoes, chayote, and green beans. For example, when other areas have finished harvesting tomatoes, Pa Co farmers start sowing seeds and will harvest off-season tomatoes to sell at high prices.

In addition, Pa Co commune has expanded peach growing areas to collect products such as flowers, fruits and peach roots. Other main plants include Shan Tuyet tea with 120 hectares, mainly in Cha Day hamlet, and plum.

The commune has well developed the homestay tourism model. As of July 2023, there were 6 homestays in Pa Co, which attract a stable number of visitors, creating jobs and increasing income for many local residents.

With a lot of efforts, by 2022, the commune's average income per capita reached nearly 20 million VND; an average growth value of 10%/year; 100% of households having access to the national grid electricity system; over 90% of households using clean water. The commune also meets 15/19 criteria for new rural construction, and it is expected to achieve 2 more criteria in 2023. 

Nuong Dam commune in Kim Boi district has praised for effectively implementing poverty reduction policies and arousing people's will to get rich. 

Many households in Nuong Dam commune have escaped poverty thanks to capital from the Bank for Social Policies. In late 2022, the rate of poor households in Nuong Dam commune was over 16%, a sharp decrease from 50% in 2016.

In 2021, Hoa Binh province's poor household rate decreased by 2.36% and it reduced by 3.2% in 2022, reaching the target assigned by the Provincial Party Committee and the People's Council. Sustainable poverty reduction has made an important contribution to promoting the province's socio-economic development, implementation of social security and social welfare policy, the development of culture, education - training, health, science - technology, labor and employment tasks, and to maintaining national defense, political security and stable social order.

According to statistics of the Hoa Binh Provincial People's Committee, nearly 168 billion VND was mobilized from all resources to implement poverty reduction policies and programs in 2022. Of which, 154 billion VND came from the central budget, over 14.6 billion VND from the local budget. By the end of 2022, the number of poor households in the province was approximately 29,000, a decrease of 5,319 households.

In 2023, Hoa Binh strives to reduce the rate of poor households by 2.5 - 3%, and from 4% or more in poor districts; to complete 49 projects serving production and people's livelihood in poor districts (including 31 projects from 2022 and 18 new projects that are launched in 2023); to build and replicate successful poverty reduction models.

In the last months of the year, Hoa Binh province will continue to well perform propaganda and advocacy to fundamentally change the thinking, perception, and actions of officials, party members and the whole society, especially to promote the spirit of self-reliance, the aspirations and proactively strive to escape poverty of local people.

At the same time, the province will promote emulation movements such as "All people unite to build new rural areas and civilized cities"; “Saturday with the people”; "Farmers compete in production and business, helping each other get rich and reduce poverty sustainably."

In addition, the province will actively call on domestic and foreign businesses, organizations and individuals to accompany and join hands with the local authorities to implement practical activities, further contributing to poverty reduction and ensuring social security in the area.

Quynh Nga