No longer leaving school in the middle

“After three - year implementation of lending programme for disadvantaged students, many children of poor households no longer cannot help leaving school” said Mr. Truong Hong Duc-Director of VBSP’s Tay Ninh branch.

Income from cows raising, Mr. Nguyen Van Lai could finance study of his children at colleges

Le Minh Phuong and his wife in Tan Hoa hamlet, Tan Thanh commune, Tan Chau istrict who have four children and own the area of 1,000m² received the loan of VND 20 million from VBSP. They have used borrowed money to cultivate cassava plants and build a muddy-walled house.  

Pursue a dream of schooling

"When Tay Ninh province mobilized the people in the area to roof their unsettled houses with corrugated iron, I acted as a guarantee for Mr. Phuong to buy on credit corrugated iron. But after even three years later, he could afford to repay unpaid amount for only some corrugated irons” Mr. Nguyen Van Hong-Chairperson of Farmers’ Association in Tan Thanh commune, Tan Chau district told.

With no land for cultivation, Phuong and his wife had to do business on wasted materials. Everyday they had to ride bicycle 10 km away to buy even pieces of wasted papers, broken plastic basins etc,. and sell to the big dealers. But at that time, as many people in Tay Ninh province also do business on wasted materials, his wife had to stay in an oratory in Sa Dec town (in Dong Thap province) and did business on wasted materials here for seven years.

Although they are the poor, his wife and him had strong determination to support their four children to finish the high school. Gladly their children all are dutiful and good at study, especially their third child Le Thi Dang is the chess champion of Tay Ninh province. His wife shared with us that “Ngoan and Pha understand our difficulties, so they did not take the university entrance exam but only took the college entrance exam in Tay Ninh province while they are both excellent at school”. In 2010, Le Thi Dang graduated from high school and they received loan from VBSP for her study, then they encouraged her to take the entrance exam to University of Agro-forestry of Ho Chi Minh city.

When Truong Hoang Son, Director of VBSP district transaction office in Tan Chau district know that they have not received loan in phase 2 for school year 2010-2011 to finance study of their three children, he promised that “Tomorrow morning you should come to my district transaction office to apply for loan, I will surely approve it”

Help parents to repay the loan

Nguyen Van Lai in Bau Dai hamlet, Phuoc Ninh commune, Duong Minh Chau district has annual income of some tens million dongs from cassava production in 7,000 m²which is not sufficient to finance the study of his children. Everyday his wife and him have to work for other people to earn more money. Recently their muddy-walled and corrugated iron-roofed house was damaged by storm, they have some savings but they decided to spend for study of their children but not for house repair.

In 2007, their oldest child Quan passed the entrance exam to Binh Duong Universitybut they could not afford to finance his university study and finally he studied at  thecollege of Electrical Engineering in Ho Chi Minh city. Their second child An also studied at a college after high school graduation. “They joined the savings and credit group and they received the total amount of VND 36 million under VBSP’s lending programme for disadvantaged students since 2008” – Tran Thi Minh, leader of Bau Dai hamlet and leader of the savings and credit group said.  

In 2010, his household received another loan of VND 10 million under VBSP’s lending programme for the poor. In 2011, Farmers’ Association granted him a sprayer of pesticide as a working facility. He said that the borrowed money from VBSP is used to raise cows for productive purpose. Quan and An both graduated from colleges and have job. They make a plan for savings to support their parents to repay the loan.

                                                                                   Khuynh Diep