(VOVworld) – The Hau Giang Farmers Association has worked to help local farmers in restructuring crops, livestock, and expanding effective models that can adapt to climate change. By 2020, Hau Giang was set to have 70% of its farming households earning at least 4,500 USD per hectare a year.  

50,200 farming households in Hau Giang have been awarded the title “Excellent Farmers in Doing Business” title, accounting for 37% of the province’s population involved in agricultural production.

Farmers harvest the winter-spring rice crop 2014-15 in Hau Giang Province. (Photo: Duy Khuong/VNA)

Over recent years Hau Giang has enhanced the restructuring of agricultural production, crops, plants, and livestock, to mitigate the impact of natural disasters. The provincial Farmers Association has also increased communications, instructing farmers on how to promote the strengths of each region and focus production and trading in a sustainable development manner.

Following this direction, farmers in Hoa My village in Phung Hiep district have moved to grow sugarcane instead of rice.

Nguyen Thi Bay of Long Truong hamlet said: “I’m very happy because this year my family has a bumper crop with sugarcane purchased at a relatively high price. Traders have already deposited to buy all my sugarcane and have promised to harvest it all in the coming days.”

The movement to encourage farmers to improve their business model has helped Hau Giang to gradually establish major material production zones to turn out high productivity, qualified products, create jobs for locals, and reduce poverty in rural areas.

According to Chau Minh Tien, Chairman of the Hau Giang Farmers Association, “The restructuring of crops, plants, and livestock which matches the salinity level is important. We have coordinated with Can Tho University and the Vietnam Farmers Association to organize a number of training courses to help farmers apply what they have learned into production."

Due to the impact of climate change on rice productivity, many farmers in Hau Giang province have turned to aquaculture. With a current area of ​​10,700 hectares, Hau Giang has gained a yearly seafood output of 74,400 tons, up 56% against 2010.

Until 2020 the Hau Giang Farmers' Association will continue to help farmers restructure crops and livestock and apply production models which can adapt best to the severe drought and saline intrusion.