Being attached all their lives to their gardens an dike slopes, going as far as they can only reach the bamboo fence at their village’s entrance full of the sweet scent of their homeland, people in the communes of Hoa Vang District, Da Nang have never imagined that one day they would go to Yeongyang County, Gyeongsanbuk-do Province, South Korea to light up hope with farming like in their hometown.

Not only does labour export contribute to creating jobs for workers but it also brings a large source of foreign currency to a certain locality, and the country as a whole, thereby making a significant contribution to poverty reduction and improving the living standard of the people.

Hoa Vang workers are diligently harvesting agricultural crops in Yeongyang, South Korea.

Going abroad to work as a farmer

Just breathing the Tet (traditional Vietnamese Lunar New Year) atmosphere for three days, Ms. Tan Thi Phuoc, 45, a resident from Dong Lam Village, Hoa Phu Commune, Hoa Vang District, Da Nang is busy preparing for her working trip to South Korea for 5 consecutive years to work in agriculture.

Last year, she made a more-than-5-month seasonal work trip in Yeongyang planting, harvesting chilis,  cabbages, lettuces and taking care of some other agricultural crops. She felt more motivated and excited about such a trip. This woman has single-handedly raised two children for 20 years because her husband unfortunately passed away many years ago.

In 2017, the Hoa Vang District’s authority proactively sent residents to work Yeongyang County to as seasonal workers. To have her first trip abroad, she used her savings and borrowed some from relatives to cover all trip expenses. She left with the belief that a faraway land would help her light up her future with the most brilliant colours.

In the land of ‘kimchi’, every day, Ms. Phuoc starts work from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., whether sunny or rainy, she and her colleagues regularly go to the fields to plant, care for and harvest crops. In total, till date, she has gone to South Korea four times, experiencing all kinds of emotions and experiencing all the burning heat in the summer and the freezing cold in the winter.

Most Vietnamese workers only know the route from home to work during the contract period. In the past few years here, Ms Phuoc has not left her workplace to admire how big and small the ‘kimchi’ country is or whether the parks, supermarkets, and roads in the capital city of Seoul are as beautiful as the movies she has seen. That is too luxurious for workers like Ms. Phuoc. She just told herself to work under the the contract and return to her hometown where her mother and children are looking forward to seeing her.

"When I first arrived, sometimes I couldn't stand it. Looking at the moonlit nights made me miss home so much, miss my children, and there were days when used pain-relieving patches on my back, legs, or necks after tense work.  Summer in South Korea is much hotter than in Viet Nam, sometimes I change up to 4 sets of work clothes a day and still get soaked. In winter, when it's minus 10 degrees, I have to wear both a hat and a raincoat to protect myself from the frosty cold. Here, the landlord partially subsidizes accommodation costs, we only work and at the end of the contract we will receive the full salary. That money helps me pay for my children's education and save money in case of financially-struggling times.”, Ms. Phuoc said emotionally.

If Ms. Phuoc goes on a 3-month work contract, she will receive VND 80-120 million, and VND 130-200 million for 5 months. That is a huge amount, helping such Vietnamese worker improve their living standard, but there are also many people who give up because they both miss home and cannot stand the pressure of work. However, the harshness of work, the longing for her mother and her children, the poverty and suffering in her hometown help her turn into strength and determination to work well in the foreign country. .

Light up the future

Like Ms. Phuoc, Ms. Thieu Thi Tuy Hang, 45, from Dong Lam Village, Hoa Vang District is a single poor mother raising two school-aged children. She said, thanks to working as a seasonal laborer in South Korea, she was able to cover the living expense and tuition fees for her children. One is in 9^th grade and the other was in 6t^h grade.

She happily boasted that after 4 years of working in South Korea, she has saved some money to have her old house upgraded so that her family can live in a more comfortable residence place. Interestingly, she could communicate fluently in Korean, which helped her be more confident when chatting with her managers in South Korea, and more proactive in her work.

Ms. Tan Thi Phuoc is harvesting lettuce on a farm in Yeongyang, South Korea in the last days of November 2023. Photo: Provided by the character

Highlights of social wellfare work

According to Mr. Nguyen Thuc Dung, Standing Vice Chairman of Hoa Vang District People's Committee, after 7 years of implementation, the cooperative and friendly relationship between Hoa Vang and Yeongyang has increasingly been stronger. The Yeongyang authority highly appreciates the cooperation and working skills of Hoa Vang workers. Therefore, the agricultural trainee exchange cooperation programme has become one of the highlights in the Hoa Vang’s social welfare and foreign affairs activities, thereby creating conditions for creating jobs, reducing poverty, improving production capacity for workers in the district’s agricultural sector.

At the same time, Hoa Vang District has been assessed by the Department of Foreign Labor Management under the Vietnamese Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs as one of the most outstanding Vietnamese 19 cities and provinces to have implemented the programme of sending seasonal workers to South Korea.

“In the coming time, the Hoa Vang District People's Committee will continue to promote exchange and cooperation activities with Yeongyang through this programme so as to boost mutual exchanges and learn more about agricultural production techniques and advanced industries in South Korea so that they can be selected to be applied in Hoa Vang’s agricultural production in an appropriate manner.”, Mr. Dung commented.

Reporting by HUYNH VU - Translating by A.THU