The fulcrum for the journey of life change

In late March, reporters were present in Luc Da commune, Con Cuong district, when the wild species were blooming, signaling a plentiful honey bee season. At that time, Mr. Lo Van Phim (born in 1983, residing in Xang village, Luc Da commune) was busy herding the cows into the barn after a day of grazing in the forest.

With a warm smile, he recalled his journey from poverty, starting with two pairs of cows bought with preferential loans. After returning home from military service, Mr. Phim married Ms. Lo Thi Xin (born in 1982). Their family life also faced many difficulties, being a poor household in the locality. As a member of the Vietnam Veterans Association in Luc Da commune, he knew about a source of capital for preferential loans, so he discussed with his wife to boldly borrow capital to do business.

In 2017, he borrowed 50 million VND from the "loan for poor households" program of the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP) to buy 2 pairs of cows for breeding. Luckily, the cows adapted to the climate and soil here and grew healthily.

Staff of the Con Cuong District branch of the Social Policy Bank always closely monitor households receiving loans to ensure that the capital is directed to the right subjects and is effective.

During this time, Mr. Phim fell seriously ill and had to go to Ho Chi Minh City for treatment. The cows were left in the care of his grandparents and relatives in the village. A year later, the cows gave birth to two calves. Mr. Phim was hospitalized and felt less pressured by the worry of not being able to repay the bank loan.

After 3 years, Mr. Phim recovered from his illness, the herd of cows grew rapidly, and gave birth to nearly ten cows, becoming a solid stepping stone to help his family escape poverty.

Mr. Phim's family boldly continued to borrow another 100 million from the program "Loan for households to produce and do business in difficult areas" to develop the forest economy. Up to now, the production forest of more than 6 hectares of lush green is nearing harvest time.

“Thanks to policy capital, my family has the assets we have today. Otherwise, we wouldn't know where to get capital to do business, let alone escape poverty…”, Mr. Phim shared.

Working hard and learning from experience, Mr. Phim and Ms. Xin's herd of cows has grown well, now there are 16. Before Tet, they sold 2 cows to have more capital to buy an industrial tractor for the family, a piglet to provide breeding for pig farming is also growing well... In 2024, the first acacia harvest brought Mr. Phim's family more than 100 million VND to continue doing business and repairing the house. The stilt house of Mr. Phim and his wife is considered the most spacious in the village after many times of selling cows or harvesting forests to repair.

Mr. Lu Van Choong, Chairman of the Association of War Veterans in Luc Da commune, said that Mr. Phim is one of the households that effectively uses the loan capital entrusted by the Association for lending. Besides, there are households such as: Mr. Lo Van Tu (Xang village), Mr. Nguyen Huu Phuc (Liem Son village)... The outstanding loan balance of members in Luc Da commune is more than 17 billion VND, of which preferential capital for poor households is over 4.1 billion VND, near-poor households is 2.8 billion VND...

Visiting the family of Ms. Tran Thi Ha (born in 1979, residing in Block 5, Tra Lan Town, Con Cuong District) in a spacious house with full furniture, she was filled with joy and happiness. She and her husband have been married for nearly 20 years, but after many incidents, the family still cannot repair the makeshift, dilapidated and cramped house while the children are growing up.

The stilt house of Mr. Phim and Ms. Xin's family was built spaciously from the effectiveness of preferential policy loans.

Luckily, she was able to borrow 500 million VND from the program "Building, renovating or repairing houses for living".

With the money saved and borrowed more, the spacious house worth nearly 1 billion VND was completed by the end of 2024 as a dream come true. "We have to settle down before we can start a career, uncle. This debt is the motivation for the couple to continue to strive, trying to pay off the bank sooner than the 20-year loan term," Ms. Ha confided.

Launch pad for change in mountainous district of Con Cuong

Con Cuong mountainous district is a district located in the southwest of Nghe An province, bordering Laos with 73% of the population being ethnic minorities. The area is mainly mountainous, isolated, with difficult transportation... In recent years, sustainable poverty reduction has always been of great concern to the local government and people. By the end of 2024, Con Cuong district will have 13.8% poor households, a decrease of more than 9% compared to 2020.

Mr. Nguyen Viet Nam, Director of the Transaction Office of the Social Policy Bank of Con Cuong district, shared that social policy capital is a bright spot in the direction of the District Party Committee, and the coordination with the branches' trustee associations is very close.

The house was built spaciously thanks to preferential loans from Ms. Ha's family.

Mr. Nguyen Viet Nam said, “Good propaganda work has also changed the mindset about borrowing capital and doing business when borrowing money. There are no longer many people who rely on others like before, but instead strive to escape poverty and escape poverty sustainably…”.

Following the staff of the Con Cuong District Social Policy Bank into the village, we can see how closely the staff are involved with capital. Although they work and live in town, they know the roads in the village as well as the way home. In addition, through the entrusted units, the staff of the bank branches constantly and regularly connect to regularly check and evaluate the effectiveness of the loan capital, while encouraging people in production and business. Therefore, the preferential capital has reached the right people, for the right purpose and promoted its effectiveness.

Dry numbers have become dreams with form – in the green acacia forests, the fat cows, and especially in the hopeful eyes of families who once struggled with poverty. Preferential loan policies not only help them escape poverty but also open the way for them to rise to a more prosperous life.

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/von-chinh-sach-canh-cua-mo-ra-tuong-lai-no-am-noi-vung-nui-nghe-an-post543952.html