Crocodile leather products by Hoa Ca Crocodile Farm in HCM City.

Developing advantages of trade villages

Traditional trade villages have been an advantage in Ho Chi Minh City's rural areas. During the urbanisation process, these traditional trade villages have created jobs for tens of thousands of labourers.

In order to create more jobs for farmers, from 2003, the city authorities have implemented a project to develop trade villages.

Accordingly, the city's department of agriculture and rural development, along with carrying out assessment on the real situation and potentials of trade villages, has co-ordinated with relevant agencies and organisations to work out plans for promoting trade, building trademarks and boost consumption of products by traditional trade villages for farmers.

In addition, the Centre for Scientific and Technical Research and Agricultural Expansion Encouragement have established close relations with trade villages in investment of new machines and equipment, technological transfer as well as provision of capital for farmers.

Thanks to these efforts, 24 traditional trades in rural areas in Ho Chi Minh City have constantly developed.

A lot of products from these trade villages have now become well-known on the domestic market.

Drying rice waffles in Phu Hoa Dong commune.

For a decade now, rice waffles produced by farmers in Phu Hoa Dong commune, Cu Chi district, have won the prestige from local consumers. In Phu Hoa Dong now, there are currently nearly 1,250 households embarking in making rice waffles, creating jobs for some 6,000 labourers. Phu Hoa Dong rice waffles now can be found not only in markets but also in supermarkets and even they have been exported.

Thai My commune, also in Cu Chi district, is famous for its rattan and bamboo products which have been sold in Ho Chi Minh City and neighbouring localities, creating jobs for some 4,000 local labourers.

Trade villages in Can Gio, another suburban district of Ho Chi Minh City, have also created many stable jobs for local farmers. Two salt making communes of Ly Nhon and Thanh An have produced over 86,000 tonnes of salt a year, creating stable jobs for some 2,500 local farmers.

More trades for farmers

Ho Chi Minh City has pooled efforts to help farmers in its suburban districts find jobs.

The city has organised various short-term vocational training courses for young labourers and facilitate those school graduates to follow regular vocational training schools. On average, some 20,000 young people in the city's rural areas have found their jobs in industrial zones established right in their localities.

In addition, there have been many new trades as the result of the process in shifting the plant and animal structure.

In Cu Chi, raising milk cow has become a major trade for farmers. The district now has a total herd of 58,000 cows. With strong development of milk cow raising, there appears the needs for many other trades related to raising cows such as milking, planting and cutting grass for cows. Tan Thanh Dong commune has over 300 hectares of grass land for milk cows. Average income from selling grass is four to five times higher than that from rice.

At milk cow farm of farmer Nguyen Khac Dao in Cu Chi district.

Another new trade is raising crocodiles mostly in Thanh Loc and Thanh Xuan ward in district 12. Farmers in the city are now raising an estimated 95,000 crocodiles. Thus, there is another new trade: processing products from crocodile skin.

Farmers in Ho Chi Minh City have also raised weasels, porcupines, wild boars, geckos, or even worms (to provide as feed for ornamental fish), etc.

Ho Chi Minh City is targeting to build its new civilised and modern rural areas, contributing to the general development of the whole city.

By Xuan Hung and Lam Hue Nu