Raising mussels in Duyen Hai District,
Viet Nam
A case study taken from Oxfam's 2005 Programme Impact Report
Three mussel-raising clubs have been formed in Duyen Hai District, Tra Vinh, Viet Nam. The Duyen Hai District People’s Committee implements the project through a project-management board. Oxfam has provided support for a revolving loan fund, with members charged a monthly management fee of 0.3 per cent of the loan. Working with local government authorities, Oxfam has also supported members to develop their production techniques and marketing skills.
The market for mussels is growing within Viet Nam and internationally, and the 122 members of the first two clubs to be formed are making good profits.
The market for mussels is growing within Viet Nam and internationally, and the 122 members of the first two clubs to be formed are making good profits from selling mussels. Last year, this was equal to about five months’ income for a poor household. Raising mussels is not very time-consuming. Members of the clubs can therefore continue with other activities that bring in income alongside mussel farming.
The club leaders and the District government have taken active steps to ensure that poorer households are not left out, and that they benefit as much as possible as club members. Initially, the clubs asked members to take turns to act as volunteer guards. This meant that each household needed to make someone available for about three days a month. Then clubs decided to pay for guards, and one club paid members from poor households to take on this job, giving them additional income.
Women have become more involved in market transactions, making decisions and taking on positions of leadership through being involved in the clubs. In Hiep Thanh Commune, the chair, accountant, and cashier of the club are all women. Within the home, however, it seems that women’s and men’s roles have not changed.
For the project to be possible at all, the local communities needed access to coastal land, which at the time was being rented to entrepreneurs from other provinces. The clubs were given this access, but as yet without any formal written agreement from the District People’s Committee. National land and fishery law does allow for people who have no land, or little land, to be given access to unused resources, but first these need to be measured and appraised. As part of Oxfam’s wider programme, the Tra Vinh Province Department of Natural Resources and Environment is being given support to make this assessment of coastal lands. It is expected that a policy about permanent land allocation to groups of poor farmers and fishers will then follow.
The profit generated in 2004 has already exceeded the management and training costs for the project.
The success of the clubs is leading to other positive developments through government support. The People’s Committee of Hiep Thanh has decided to establish another mussel club, and is assisting poor households to access a bank loan without collateral, and at an affordable rate.
In 2003–04, the cost of the project was £22,465. The revolving fund amounted to 86 per cent of this; 5 per cent was for management costs and 9 per cent for training.
The profit generated in 2004 has already exceeded the management and training costs for the project. Profits in the coming year, when the three clubs are all harvesting mussels, are expected to be considerably higher, and will more than cover all the project costs. Mussel farming is certainly more profitable than most other activities that the members undertake, so the benefits for them are substantial. The project is also making a contribution to bringing about the wider changes that the programme aims to achieve.