Focus on vocational training

Vừ A Sùng from Phô village, Sinh Phình commune, is one of the success stories after participating in a livestock breeding and disease prevention training course organized by the Regional Vocational and Continuing Education Center in collaboration with local authorities. Thanks to the knowledge gained, Sùng carefully follows proper procedures for animal housing and feed. As a result, his three pairs of buffaloes and 40 goats are healthy, well-developed, and breeding successfully.

Sùng shared that life used to be tough for his family and many others in the village, with limited livestock development and financial difficulties. The root cause was traditional farming habits, feeding animals whatever was available and treating illnesses without professional care, which led to slow growth and poor health.

Realizing these methods were ineffective, Sùng enrolled in the local training course. After learning and hands-on practice, he mastered essential breeding knowledge to apply practically. Equipped with this know-how, he eagerly shares and guides neighbors to help them improve together.

Experience shows that when awareness campaigns succeed and people understand the benefits of vocational training, they actively join courses to enhance production skills. They then apply these skills to develop economic models suitable to their family and local conditions. A notable example is Lò Thị Ọi’s family in Món Hà village, Mường Lạn commune. After attending a training course on poultry breeding and disease prevention, her family invested in raising hundreds of ducks, chickens, and geese. Their farming supplies clean food for home use and sells to the market.

Lò Thị Ọi happily said: “In the past, we raised a few chickens and ducks traditionally, but diseases often wiped out most of the flock some years. Since receiving technical guidance, our family has learned to keep pens clean, vaccinate fully, and choose proper feed, so the animals grow better. The flock now grows evenly, providing a stable monthly income to cover household expenses”. She hopes the Government continues to support and maintain such training programs so more disadvantaged households like hers can access knowledge, change their mindset, and rise out of poverty.

Enhanced awareness campaigns and coordinated measures to improve rural labor skills have played a key role in boosting production, linked with agricultural restructuring and economic shifts in rural areas. Annually, the province trains over 9,000 workers and creates jobs for more than 10,000 people. By the time the two-level local government model was implemented, 96 out of 115 communes had met labor criteria for new rural construction, equivalent to 83.4%.

Opportunities to improve human resource quality

Aiming to raise workforce quality and help residents develop their economy for sustainable poverty reduction, local authorities have paid special attention to job creation, especially facilitating access to overseas labor markets.

Three years ago, Quàng Văn Tươi from Búng Lao commune had no stable job, relying solely on farming and gathering, resulting in a difficult life. In 2022, after learning about a labor export program to Japan for machine repair and mechanical work, introduced by a Hanoi - based company through local authorities, Tươi decided to join. Initially, his income during probation was VND 20 million per month. Now, with solid skills, he earns between VND 30 and 40 million monthly.

His wife, Quàng Thị Hinh, said: “Life is much better now. Thanks to my husband’s income, besides daily expenses, we can invest in livestock and save some money.”

Seeing the benefits of labor export, several localities maintain cooperation with companies such as Labor Export, Trade, and Tourism Joint Stock Company and IIG Human Resources Co., Ltd. to recruit workers for fixed term jobs abroad in markets like Qatar, Japan, and South Korea. Exported workers in various professions earn between VND 20 and 30 million per month. Importantly, participants receive support covering travel costs, loan paperwork, passports, health checks, basic skills training, and full insurance and welfare benefits as regulated by the host countries. Statistics show that from 2020 to now, Điện Biên has supplied nearly 1,000 laborers abroad.

Kiều Xuân Hoàng, Vice Chairman of Búng Lao commune’s People’s Committee, said: “Joining overseas labor markets allows workers, including poor households, near-poor, and ethnic minorities, to benefit from company policies and state support such as vocational training, skill development, language learning, accommodation support, personal equipment, and exit expenses. This connection not only raises income but also helps them gain knowledge, improve skills and discipline, and prepare for industrialization, modernization, and economic development after returning home.”

Implementing national target programs for new rural construction, sustainable poverty reduction, and socio-economic development in ethnic minority regions for 2021- 2025, the provincial Social Policy Bank has launched loan programs for poor households, near-poor, and newly escaped-poor families with total loan disbursement exceeding VND 6,600 billion, benefiting nearly 60,000 households. By mid-2025, outstanding loans reached over VND 5,299 billion. Preferential capital is disbursed promptly, meeting people’s needs, supporting investment in cultivation, livestock, and new technology applied agricultural production.