Poverty alleviation story in Dong Ruong village

The "revolution" of crop structure conversion with the determination to develop Bat Do bamboo shoots on forestry hills into a key economic crop is a lifesaver and helps the Mong people in Dong Ruong change their lives.

The story of poverty alleviation in Dong Ruong and the history of the village's birth are closely linked to the life of Village Chief Giang A Sau.

Talking to us in his newly built house, Mr. Sau slowly told us: In 1987, 3 Mong households in Suoi Giang (Van Chan) migrated freely to Mo Vang land (Van Yen), including his family and his uncle's family, who came to Kien Thanh land to settle in this deserted valley.

Not a single house, and dozens of kilometers away from the commune center by forest road, it was not until 1994 that households were officially admitted to the commune and Dong Ruong village was also established this year, still with only 3 households.

Mr. Giàng A Nhà, my paternal uncle, was the village chief but was illiterate. My parents also did not remember exactly when I was born, only vaguely around 1971, 1972. In the early 1990s, 1991, this area was still very hungry, my family and other families in the village had to go to the forest to find brown roots to eat instead of rice...

Growing up with the poverty of Dong Ruong, more than anyone else, Mr. Giang A Sau understands and always cherishes the desire to escape poverty. For nearly 30 years (since 1997), he was elected by the Party and the people as the Head of Dong Ruong village. He does not remember how many new trees and animals the province and district have brought to this land to help the people develop the economy and reduce poverty, but the number of poor households in the village has decreased and then increased. It was not until 2004, when Bat Do bamboo was brought to this land, that a new page of life was truly opened for the Mong people here.

Recalling the days of switching to growing Bat Do bamboo shoots, Mr. Ha Van Luyen, an officer of the Land Administration - Agriculture, Forestry and Environment of Quy Mong commune, former Chief of Police of Kien Thanh commune (old), also one of the young cadres' families who pioneered in growing Bat Do bamboo shoots in the locality, confided: Bat Do bamboo is easy to grow, suitable for the soil, so it grows very well, after 2 to 3 years it can be harvested. The most difficult thing in the first years was the consumption market, the bamboo shoots were produced a lot but there were no buyers.

The commune persistently mobilized and the person who made great contributions to finding outlets for Bat Do bamboo shoots at that time was the former Chairman of Kien Thanh Commune People's Committee, Hoang Van Luy. At that time, every time he went to Yen Bai city to study, he always tied a sack of boiled bamboo shoots to the back of his motorbike, taking advantage of every moment and every place to introduce the product and look for traders. With that approach, Chairman Luy was fortunate to connect with Van Dat Company Limited, headquartered in Hai Duong province (now Hai Phong). The enterprise quickly signed a contract with the district to purchase products for the people, which has been stable since then.

The production linkage model according to the value chain between people and enterprises has been gradually formed. Up to now, in the commune, there have been more large enterprises such as Yen Thanh Joint Stock Company participating in the linkage to purchase products with a stable purchase price of about 5,000 - 6,000 VND/kg of fresh bamboo shoots.

The good beginnings have firmly consolidated the people's steadfast faith in the Party. The Mong people of Dong Ruong confidently expanded the area of bamboo and shoot cultivation, with some households having a few hectares, while others have nearly ten hectares. With each bumper bamboo crop, Dong Ruong has new households escaping poverty.

Mr. Giang A Thao's family is an example. In 2004, the village promoted the planting of Bat Do bamboo shoots, and his family also planted a few dozen trees. Each year, they planted a few hundred more trees, some years they planted a thousand trees, and when Bat Do bamboo shoots gave stable economic efficiency, his family had nearly 7 hectares. After 4 years of focusing on the new crop, Mr. Thao's family escaped poverty.

Mr. Giang A Thao shared: “There is no tree that is as easy to grow and gives high income as Bat Do bamboo. My family currently has nearly 10,000 bamboo shoots, and last year's bamboo shoots brought in about 200 million VND. Thanks to Bat Do bamboo shoots, my family and many other households in the village have escaped poverty. My family has just built a new house worth nearly 1 billion VND, and had to borrow 300 million VND, but after calculating, after harvesting this bamboo shoot, we will definitely pay off all the debt. If we work hard to cultivate and care for it, each bamboo shoot will bring in millions of VND, so buying a car is not difficult for families growing Bat Do bamboo in the commune.”



This year's Bat Do bamboo shoot harvest in Dong Ruong has been nearly 2 weeks and will last until December. The village currently has 150 hectares of Bat Do bamboo shoots, the village with the second largest planting area in Quy Mong Moi commune. There are 4 bamboo shoot purchasing points in the village. Last year's bamboo shoot harvest, villagers earned over 3 billion VND.

Village Chief Giang A Sau planted more than 2 hectares, earning nearly 200 million VND. He also built a new house worth nearly 1 billion VND, bought a pickup truck to transport goods, and a car to travel.

Mr. Sau is very proud, because the people in his village are very hard-working and diligent: "In Dong Ruong, land is money, so any family that has land to grow Bat Do bamboo, Sat bamboo, Vau bamboo, or cinnamon, will plant it all, leaving no empty land" - Village Chief Giang A Sau affirmed.

At the end of 2024, Dong Ruong was recognized as a model new rural village. The Bat Do bamboo growing area has become one of the key economic zones of the new Quy Mong commune of Lao Cai province.

Mr. Pham Van Hoan, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Committee of Quy Mong Commune, said: Bat Do bamboo shoots are the key economic crop of the locality. Following the State's policies and the resolutions of the Lao Cai Provincial People's Council in the field of agricultural, forestry and fishery production in the period of 2026 - 2030, the commune focuses on investing in the Bat Do bamboo shoot raw material area.

Quy Mong aims to expand the new planting area by 180 hectares by 2030, bringing the total area to over 2,460 hectares; commercial bamboo shoot output to 20,710 tons; and strive for an average income of 85 million VND/person/year.

Mr. Pham Van Hoan, Chairman of Quy Mong Commune People's Committee

The merger of Yen Bai and Lao Cai provinces into a new, larger Lao Cai province will open up potential and opportunities to increase the value of local agricultural products, with the expectation that more products from Bat Do bamboo shoots in particular will enter world markets such as Japan and Taiwan.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/chuyen-xoa-ngheo-o-thon-dong-ruong-post879088.html