November 15th and 16th were busy days for the people of Can Loc district, Ha Tinh province. The farmers of Can Loc are part of SRD’s VM038 project, “Taking a value chains approach to improving rural livelihoods in the context of climate change and natural disasters Ha Tinh province”. The project’s focus is on increasing the sustainability of livelihoods for farmers while taking into account the recent challenges of disaster risk management and climate change adaptation. During these two days, the members of the community really had the chance to come together and discuss important issues collectively!
On the 15th, SRD’s facilitated a forum on gender equality in the village of Vinh Loc. Villagers talked about the difference between a man’s day and a woman’s day, so they could better understand the daily work of one-another, and agreed to share more of the household responsabilities. They learned about the situation of gender inequality in other parts of the world. They also discussed barriers to gender equality in their community, and came up with action plans to overcome those barriers. It was determined that women must improve their capacities, donfidence and skills to become more active in community activities, especially politics. The workshop was filled with a lot of discussion, laughter, and even singing. Despite the somewhat serious topic of the discussions, the participants kept the mood happy and optimistic. The enthusiastic involvement of locals in the workshop was inspirational to see. The workshop was a great demonstration of the commitment that the people of Vinh Loc have towards bettering their community! SRD hopes to follow up with Vinh Loc, to see how gender equality progresses in the future.
Some Vinh Loc farmers preparing their gender equality action plan
The following day, at the Can Loc community center, SRD held a competition about climate change and natural disasters. The event was attended by many villagers, and the center was soon filled with a big crowd. Two community groups performed songs and short skits that spread messages of climate change issues. There was also a round of climate change trivia, where audience members got the chance to answer questions as well. The judges, who were climate change experts and local leaders, scored both groups throughout the event and a winner was chosen. It was certainly a hard choice to make, as both groups had very entertaining performances! The event was a great way for the community to get involved in, and learn more about, climate change and natural disasters which they were very excited to be a part of. It brought villagers from the entire district together and got them thinking about adapting their livelihoods to climate change. After the competition, SRD staff took a photo of some participants holding a candle, which was submitted to the “Light the Flame” initiative by Manos Unidas (the project’s donor). “Light the Flame” is to promote the solidarity of poorer communities, and the dedication that Can Lao had to this event was a demonstration of this kind of solidarity! The district of Can Lao clearly have a lot of devotion to improving their lives and adapting to climate change, and SRD is proud to continue to support them through VM038.
A funny skit performed by one of the community groups Coming together after the competition
Centre for Sustainable Rural Development (SRD)
No.31, Alley 19 Kim Dong Street, Hoang Mai District, Ha Noi
Phone: +84 24 3943 6676/78 | Fax: +84 24 3943 6449
