The Vietnam - Republic of Korea (RoK) friendship village in Vung Liem town, Vung Liem district, Vinh Long province has become a venue accommodating local disadvantaged people and helping them secure stable livelihoods.

The project is co-funded by the Consulate General of the RoK in HCM City, the Asia Cultural Exchange foundation and the RoK insurance company of Hanwha Life. The project has operated since 2013 in the provinces of Vinh Long, Tra Vinh and Kien Giang.

It targets households without residential land or living in landslide-prone areas, helping them settle in and lead a stable life.

The Vietnam – RoK friendship village in Vinh Long province. (Photo: thvl.vn)

So far, 117 households in Vinh Long were allocated with land in the village, with 77 building concrete houses with funding from the project.

In addition to that, the villagers were helped to take part in vocational training classes that enabled them to increase their incomes. The training was co-held by the People’s Committee of Vung Liem Town and the Vung Liem district vocational training centre.

They have also accessed loans to develop trading and production, provided by the Vung Liem district branch of the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies.

Nguyen Thi Ngoi, a resident living in the village said she used to live in Thanh Binh Commune, an area radically affected by landslides. Therefore, she had had to live off her sister for nearly 20 years.

After receiving 30 million VND (1,344 USD) funded by the project to build a house in the village, she is now opening a small store at home and capable of doing skinning cashew nuts to raise incomes.

Source: VNA