Ethnic people in Thượng Hóa Commune receive free medical checkups and health consultations during "Border Spring" programme. — VNA/VNS Photo

QUẢNG BÌNH — Receiving a gift from a charity group of the 'Border Spring' programme made student Cao Ngọc Huyền feel so happy.

"Our life here is still difficult, but we always receive the attention and care of the local authorities, border guards and other donors," she said.

"We will try our best to learn to be useful people in the future and help villagers have better lives," Huyền said.

Huyền is one of many local students and ethnic people in Thượng Hóa Commune, Minh Hóa District, Quảng Bình Province to be cheered by the gifts.

Hundreds of gifts have been carefully packed to send to people and soldiers in the remote border area in Quảng Bình to help them have a warm Tết (Lunar New Year) festival.

The gifts come from volunteers, youth union, veterans' association and agencies in Quảng Bình.

Although they are still quite tired after a long trip to Thượng Hóa Commune, everyone in charity group of the 'Border Spring' programme feels cheered up by the warm welcome of the locals.

Nearly 250 Tết gifts have been presented to local students and 210 gifts to ethnic minority households and policy beneficiaries.

The group also inaugurated a primary and secondary schools in Ón and Mò O Ồ Ồ villages and offered gifts to soldiers at the Cà Xèng border point.

"The 'Border Spring' programme is a meaningful activity towards people in border and mountainous areas. These are just small gifts but they are our love and sharing with the local people to help them enjoy Tết," said Mạnh Thị Minh, deputy secretary of the Youth Union of Vietnam News Agency.

During the two-day charity journey, the group also organised a special event dubbed the “0 đồng market” which took place at Mò O Ồ Ồ Village.

Aiming to bring joy to welcome the Lunar New Year, the volunteer group worked with local authorities to organise the charitable market with different goods for Tết holiday.

"It's a market of love, helping poor people have a warm holiday. All people here feel so happy," said Cao Xuân Long, a local resident.

The enthusiasm created a special atmosphere at the year-end with hope for a year full of happiness, according to the secretary of provincial Youth Union, Nguyễn Tuấn Hùng.

"The '0 đồng' market shows the love and sharing of the community to the poor in remote areas, arousing young people to love their homeland and nation and be willing to go everywhere to help people in need," he said.

The programme also provided free medical checkups and health consultations to local people and soldiers.

Major Nguyễn Trung Chính from Cà Xèng border point said most people here are ethnic minorities including the Chứt, Rục and Sách communities.

"People here are still facing many difficulties so we have launched many programmes to help locals. We have supported ethnic groups to grow rice, adopt poor children to help them access education and bring electricity to the villages,” the major said.

Poverty, lack of education facilities, poor infrastructure and low awareness of local people have deprived many children of education opportunities.

Chính said local border soldiers have worked to get more children access to education and helped ethnic communities improve their lives. — VNS