Women getting engaged in new rural construction

Dien Khanh District Women’s Union has chosen suitable activities adapting to specific communities to develop the pilot model on women getting engaged in new rural construction, attracting the participation of several members.

 

Pilot model

 

Phu Khanh Ha Village, Dien Thanh Commune, was recognized to meet the new rural standard 2018. Roads are clean and beautiful with colorful flowers thanks to the joint effort of women members in creating a pleasant environment. This is a main activity of the model on women getting engaged in new rural construction. The support funding of VND1.5 million for the model was spent on buying flower plants and fertilizers. Members were motivated to join clean-up effort, plant flower trees in front of their houses, remove illegal advertising from electric poles, etc. Therefore, the village environment has much improved with more beautiful roads shaded by flowers and trees, says Nguyen Thi Hoa, Head of Phu Khanh Ha Village Women’s Branch.

 

 

 

Nguyen Thi Hai Yen, Chairperson of Dien Thanh Commune Women’s Union says, the Phu Khanh Ha Branch has met the “no hunger and poverty” criteria by facilitating members to access to credit loans provided by the Bank for Social Policies and offering livelihood instruments to disadvantaged members.

Before the model was developed, there were 5 poor and marginally poor households. They have been helped to access to loans to promote family business, repair and build clean water facilities. 3 households have been lifted out of poverty. The rest 2 families have social benefit recipients. Besides, the branch has integrated education on the law on family planning and child care to prevent child malnutrition and school drop-outs; and fight against social evils and family violence. 

 

Model expansion

 

From the effectiveness of the pilot model in Dien Thanh Commune, Dien Khanh District Women’s Union has expanded the model on women joining effort in new rural construction in Dien Loc Commune, which is striving to meet the new rural standard by the end of this year. Dien Loc Commune is a purely agricultural community where most women members are farmers and retail sellers. Therefore, the model that the women union has chosen to develop in the commune is on plastic bag use reduction in daily activities.

 

 According to the leader of the Dien Loc Commune Women’s Union, the focus activity is suitable for the commune where banana leaves are available to replace plastics for food packaging. At the model launching ceremony, thanks to VND1.5 million assistance from the district union, the commune offered some market bags to members for daily use and invited members who are saleswomen to propagandize harmful effects of plastic bags on the environment and encourage the use of eco-friendly materials such as banana leaves and paper in food packaging in a bid to curb plastic waste. Moreover, the model in Dien Loc Commune also includes environmental protection activities and family economic development support.

 

The model is modified to adapt to specific local circumstances to promote the effectiveness and facilitate the expansion to communities with similar features. The District Women’s Union plans to pilot the model on the use of cloth bags instead of plastic ones for shopping and organize a plastic recycled art contest to raise public awareness of environmental protection, according to Pham Thi Hoa, Chairperson of Dien Khanh District Women’s Union.

 

Mai Hoang

Translated by N.T