Women make handicraft products from dried water hyacinth stems in Kiên Giang Province’s Gò Quao District. — VNA/VNS Photo Văn Sĩ

KIÊN GIANG — Kiên Giang Province has developed making handicraft products from dried water hyacinths, helping many people have stable income and escape poverty.

The Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta province has many rivers and canals in which there are plenty of water hyacinths, and people harvest mature plants and use their dried stems to make baskets, hats, carpets and other handicraft products.

Nguyễn Thuỷ Giang and her husband in Gò Quao District’s Vĩnh Hòa Hưng Bắc Commune are more than 60 years old, have no farmland and have had this occupation for many years.

The job has helped her family escape poverty and have money to take care of their four children’s education. Their children have graduated and have stable jobs now, Giang said.

Previously, they made water hyacinth products day and night when they had free time and earned about VNĐ7-8 million (US$280-320) a month, and this was enough to take care of their children, she said.

Now that their children have stable jobs, they spend about six to seven hours a day making products and earn about VNĐ5-6 million ($200-240) a month, and this is enough for their family.

In Vĩnh Thuận District’s Phong Đông Commune, more than 200 women have a permanent job of making water hyacinth handicraft products.

Lê Thị Đảm in Phong Đông Commune had previously worked as a daily hired worker and had unstable income.

Her life has become stable after she switched to making water-hyacinth products in 2019, she said.

Making water hyacinth products is not only suitable for women but also for men, elder people and children.

Nguyễn Thị Hiệp Hòa, deputy chairwoman of the provincial Women’s Union, said that previously the model of making water hyacinth products was mostly done by people in their free time to improve incomes.

Over the past five years, the establishment of co-operative groups, co-operatives and water-hyacinth weaving clubs has boosted the sales of water hyacinth products and more people are participating in making the products.

Thuận Phát in Gò Quao District’s Vĩnh Hòa Hưng Bắc Commune is one of the first handicraft product co-operatives in Kiên Giang and makes water hyacinth products.

Trần Thị Thu Ngân, its director, said the co-operative has 10 members and more than 300 households in Vĩnh Hoà Hưng Bắc and neighbouring communes make handicraft products for it.

Of the 300 households, nearly 20 poor and near poor households have escaped poverty while other households have good incomes, she said.

After operating for seven years, the co-operative has created stable jobs for 450 labourers who have an average income of VNĐ3-4.5 million ($120-160) a month.

The provincial People’s Committee has recognised the occupation of making water hyacinth products as one of its traditional occupations.

Hòa, deputy chairwoman of the provincial Women’s Union, said that to develop the occupation of making water hyacinth products and other traditional occupations sustainably and create stable incomes for its members in the future, the union will continue co-operating with relevant agencies and localities to boost the application of advanced technologies in production and promote products.

It will implement support policies, especially soft loans, and link with companies to buy handicraft products to secure stable sales, improve product value and boost incomes for labourers, she said. — VNS