The dream of building a spacious 3-storey house with full amenities has come true for the family of Mr. Hoang Van Lu, a Nung ethnic group, in Na Day village, Muong Khuong town (Muong Khuong). At the age of 34, Mr. Lu has a relatively full life, while many people in the village at his age are still struggling to make ends meet.

Mr. Lu could not have imagined that success would come so soon, because he came from a farming family and had a very difficult life. After graduating from high school in 2008, he did all kinds of jobs but only earned enough to eat and take care of the family's basic needs. The turning point was when he decided to go to work in Korea in 2012. Working here, he was paid 36 million VND/month. Thanks to his diligence and hard work, he tried to work overtime to increase his income.

After finishing his 3-year labor contract, he saved a large amount of money to return to his hometown to buy land and build a house. Mr. Lu happily shared: "I am really happy and satisfied with my current life." Recently, Mr. Lu continued to apply and go to Korea to work for another 3 years.

Like Mr. Lu, the family of Mr. Long Duc Manh, 33 years old, in the residential group of Xom Cu (Muong Khuong town) faced many economic difficulties. In 2022, Mr. Manh went to work in Japan. With the job of operating construction machinery and from the increased income, after deducting expenses, he saved 30 million VND/month. This is a dream income that he never thought of. He hopes that after finishing his labor contract, when he returns to his hometown, he will have some money to build a house and buy a truck for business and production.

After 14 months of working in Japan, Mr. Manh feels that the working environment here is very good, the income is stable, and he has also matured a lot. “I learned a lot from the Japanese, they are disciplined and have a high sense of responsibility for their work. I will try to absorb and gain valuable experience during my time working here to serve myself when I return to my homeland,” Mr. Manh shared.

Since the beginning of 2023, Muong Khuong district has had 41 people, mostly ethnic minorities, working under contracts in many countries and territories in East Asia.

"The work of sending people to work abroad is increasingly receiving attention and close direction from Party committees and authorities at all levels, considering this a solution to help people have high incomes and escape poverty sustainably."

Mr. Nong Van Minh, Head of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs of Muong Khuong district

To effectively implement the work of sending workers to work abroad, the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs of Muong Khuong district has done a good job of vocational training for workers. In the past time, the department has coordinated with the Employment Service Center (Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs) to organize many career counseling activities in poor communes, disadvantaged communes, and border areas; invited units and enterprises operating in the field of contracts abroad to directly advise people so that they can clearly understand the policies and benefits when working in countries and territories around the world.

Not only in Muong Khuong, the demand for working abroad in other localities in the province is increasing. According to statistics from the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, in 2022 and 7 months of 2023, the whole province had 328 workers working abroad under contracts (an increase of more than 51% compared to 2020 and 2021), of which the proportion of ethnic minority workers accounted for 75%. Currently, Japan and Taiwan are two key labor markets, attracting Vietnamese workers in general and workers in Lao Cai province in particular; the Korean market is also attractive to workers, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic.

On average, after 3 years of working abroad, workers can save from 700 million VND to 1 billion VND. With the money saved, many families have escaped poverty. After returning home, they are able to invest in production, business, develop production, and stabilize the economy for themselves and their families.

The concept and awareness of Lao Cai people about working abroad have changed a lot, so they have proactively sought out market information, proactively learned vocational skills and foreign languages ​​to keep up with the trend, with the desire to have a good working environment and high income to ensure their lives. Thanks to that, the quality of workers working abroad in the province has been constantly improved.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong Minh, Deputy Director of Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs

Faced with the increasing demand for working abroad, the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs directed the Provincial Employment Service Center and a number of affiliated units to coordinate and promote communication, consultation, and introduction of careers and jobs for people, especially in mountainous areas and ethnic minority areas.

Mr. Luu Cong Hoan, Deputy Director of the Provincial Employment Service Center, said: “There is a trend of people looking for information about overseas workers, especially since 2022. In recent times, the Center has promoted consulting and supporting workers who want to work abroad by organizing conferences and job fairs, through mass media and social networks.” Since 2022, the Center has organized over 50 specialized conferences and job fairs at the grassroots level.

In order to make overseas job consulting and introduction activities more effective and productive, in the coming time, the Provincial Employment Service Center will focus on organizing solutions and providing in-depth consultation for groups of people who are really in need. The Center will closely coordinate with the authorities of communes, wards and towns and work directly with the people, selecting workers who meet the requirements of qualifications, health and job requirements. Through this solution, workers will not only ensure basic standards from the beginning but also limit people from investing money, studying and making inappropriate and ineffective choices.

It is known that the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs has also advised the Provincial People's Committee to implement policies to support workers working abroad under contracts according to the National Target Program for Sustainable Poverty Reduction and the National Target Program for Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas. Deputy Director of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thi Hong Minh affirmed: "The effective implementation of support policies has removed difficulties and limitations and created favorable conditions for workers to work abroad. Thereby promoting the movement of working abroad, contributing to job creation and income increase for ethnic minorities".