Giving single women having small children a hand by offering livelihoods, and assistance in starting a business to escape poverty sustainably are what the Da Nang Association of Charities and Children's Rights Protection has done in recent years.

Ho Thi Dieu Oanh and her La Huong vegetable stall at Nam Duong market. Photo: HUYNG TRANG

Mrs Ho Thi Dieu Oanh, whose husband died of cancer 12 years ago, now resides in Nam Duong Ward, Hai Chau district, with 2 children and her sister-in-law, who has suffered from polio since childhood, in a 25m2-wide house.

Since becoming the breadwinner of the family, Ms Oanh has never dared to rest her hands to work all kinds of jobs such as washing dishes, being a waitress, or carrying fish as long as she can make money to earn extra income. However, her income before 2019 was only about 20,000 - 50,000 VND/day.

At the beginning of 2020, the ward-based Association of Charities and Children's Rights Protection supported her with VND 9 million and VND 2 million in scholarships for her 2 children, helping her open a small La Huong vegetable stall at Nam Duong market.

Since then, Ms Oanh's shoulders have also lightened the burden somewhat as her daily income has increased to VND 100,000-200,000. With her industrious, hard-working nature, earlier this year, Ms Oanh's family finally got off the list of poor households in the ward and has risen to become a sustainable household out of poverty. For her, this is an unthinkable change.

According to Ms Huynh Thi Nga, Chairwoman of Nam Duong ward-based Association of Charities and Children's Rights Protection, assisting poor single moms is the long-term goal of the association. In the coming time, the association will continue to search and help local single mom to fuel their energy and determination to develop their financial budget as well as stabilize their lives.

Similarly, Ms Le Thi Chung, living in Hoa Hai Ward, Ngu Hanh Son District, has currently taken care of an elderly mother and two school-age children. The weight of "rice, clothes, money" resting on the shoulders of this woman accelerated the ageing process of a person who is less than 50 years old. In 2018, Ms Chung opened a stand selling vermicelli in her yard, but due to lack of capital, she cooked vermicelli by using charcoal, making customers uncomfortable and the vermicelli flavour also smelled of charcoal.

When she was supported by the district-based Association of Charities and Children's Rights Protection with VND 12 million, she was very happy and used this money to buy an electric cooker.
Since the beginning of 2020, Ms Chung has sold 10 to 15kg of vermicelli per day. She used the accumulated capital from selling vermicelli to open a grocery store in her house to enhance the family income. In just 2 years since receiving the capital support, Ms Chung has brought her family out of the district's poor household list and lifted them out of poverty sustainably.

In the same vein, Ms Ngo Thi Dung, residing in Hoa Quy Ward, Ngu Hanh Son District, was also supported by the district-based based Association of Charities and Children's Rights Protection with VND 12 million in early 2020 to buy breeding pigs, helping to earn more income to raise her 3 children.

From the initial 5 breeding pigs, she has raised her pig herd to several dozen in just 2 only years. Accordingly, her income has gradually increased to 40 million VND/year after deducting all expenses.

As a consequence of her own efforts and the support of the, not only has Ms Dung currently been recognized by the district to be sustainable out of poverty, but she also has a quite spacious house after previous years of living in the middle of a makeshift shelter.

As shared by Ms Mai Thi Lien, Chairwoman of the Association of Charities and Children's Rights Protection of Ngu Hanh Son District, with the criterion " Joining hands to help poor households overcome difficulties and to protect children's rights", over the years, all levels of associations have focused on needy single moms raising small children to give them a hand. "Besides some help from the association, it is the will of women to do business and overcome difficulties themselves that is the decisive factor to help them escape poverty sustainably," said Ms Lien.

Reporting by HUYNH TRANG - Translating by T.VY