Supporting any tree or animal is difficult.
Nearly a year ago, Lao Dong Newspaper published a series of articles reflecting on the shortcomings in implementing the project of providing breeding cows under the National Target Program in Dien Bien province. After that, all districts that were implementing the project of providing breeding cows had to temporarily suspend the project and find other more suitable breeds and crops.
The reason for stopping the project is that the price of breeding stock was pushed up too high due to the requirement that breeding stock must have a clear origin and comply with the regulations of the Animal Husbandry Law... Meanwhile, local businesses do not have enough capacity to supply breeding stock according to regulations. Meanwhile, businesses with sufficient legal conditions do not have enough breeding stock to supply the project.
Currently, some districts in Dien Bien province have shifted to other support projects such as: Raising commercial chickens and ducks; growing coffee... However, the implementation process has encountered many difficulties, as the beneficiaries are all poor and near-poor households, with uneven awareness and failure to apply techniques to production and animal husbandry, leading to a situation where many livestock die and crops are underdeveloped.
The family of Mr. Ho A Cai - Tia Lo A Village, Nong U Commune, Dien Bien Dong District participated in planting 2 hectares of coffee since the end of September 2024 under the support project of the National Target Program. However, after that, a series of trees died. The reason is said to be that the seeds were distributed too late and the weather was harsh, so nearly 60% of the trees died after just over 1 month.
“To plant 2 hectares of coffee, I spent 30 million VND to hire local people to dig holes and plant trees. Now nearly 60% of the trees are dead, so in a few months, all the trees will die after going through winter and the Lao wind season,” said Mr. Cai.
Mr. Vu Ngoc Hoanh - Chairman of Dien Bien Dong District People's Committee - said that planting coffee trees before September is the right season, after September is the end of the planting season, the district does not allow planting.
“Faced with the large number of dead trees, the District People’s Committee has issued a document to rectify the implementation of contracts between communes (investors) and contractors. The implementation must be on time and there must be provisions to ensure the survival rate of trees,” said Mr. Hoanh.
Struggling to find a solution
In early 2024, Muong Ang was also one of the districts that had to stop the project of providing breeding cows after a series of articles reported by Lao Dong Newspaper. After that, the source was shifted to implementing projects of raising chickens, ducks and planting coffee trees... However, after just over 1 month of implementation, many chickens, ducks and coffee trees died.
With 8 projects implemented in 8 communes in Muong Ang district, the estimated cost of implementation is over 3.9 billion VND (the state budget supports over 2.7 billion VND, the rest is counterpart funding). Accordingly, each chicken is supported by the state budget with over 120,000 VND. If including the counterpart funding of participating households (common labor), each chicken costs over 175,000 VND.
According to Mr. Ta Manh Cuong - Vice Chairman of Muong Ang District People's Committee, when implementing support for chickens and ducks, many households were not interested in participating because they wanted to support buffaloes and cows to have a more valuable asset.
"Muong Ang is a strong land for growing coffee trees, however, for households without land to grow coffee trees, the district supports chicken or duck breeds. After the project ends, people can continue to develop chicken and duck flocks for eggs or use the money from selling chickens and ducks for rotation."
Regarding the effectiveness of this project, Mr. Lu Van Cuong - Deputy Director of the Agricultural Service Center of Muong Ang district - also said: "After deducting the state budget support, people can earn at least 30% profit. If the farming techniques are good, this number can be even higher."
Regarding the fact that trees and seedlings died in large numbers, Mr. Cuong said that he had assigned project officers to work with the authorities of communes and villages to inspect, propagate, and guide people on care. Next, there will be a solution to provide additional supplies in cases where many chickens, ducks, and coffee trees have died to provide additional supplies according to regulations.
