Clean water to the highlands

With the attention and investment of the Party and the State, many domestic water supply projects have been deployed in highland villages and ethnic minority areas in Thai Nguyen province. When put into use, these projects have helped thousands of households have a source of clean water for daily activities, contributing to improving the quality of life.

People of Trang Xa commune can use clean and hygienic water from the National Target Program on Socio -Economic Development in Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas for the 2021-2030 Period. Photo: Document

Changes in every home and lifestyle

Trang Xa Commune, where over 80% of the population are ethnic minorities, has faced a prolonged shortage of domestic water. In the dry season, low rainfall causes many streams to dry up, and water sources to become scarce. Many poor and near-poor households cannot afford to buy water tanks and have to use old barrels to store water. Water left outside for a long time without a lid leads to unhygienic conditions and directly affects health, especially for children and the elderly.

This situation has had many positive changes since Project 1 under the National Target Program for Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas for the 2021-2030 Period (Program 1719) was implemented. Thanks to support policies, many households have been provided with tanks and reservoirs; at the same time, they have benefited from centralized water supply projects, thereby gradually ensuring the need for safe domestic water.

The story of Mrs. Ma Thi Thoi's family in Trang Xa commune is a clear example. Mrs. Ma Thi Thoi said: In the past, the family had to connect long bamboo trees to form a water pipe from the stream. When the stream dried up, everyone had to carry cans to get water far away. The water source was not treated so it often contained mud, rotten leaves... Since the State supported the replacement with plastic pipes with taps and tanks, the family has had a stable, hygienic water source, no longer worrying about water shortages in the dry season.

Project 1 of Program 1719 focuses on two directions: Supporting decentralized domestic water supply (priority for purchasing, equipping or building water tanks for each household) and developing centralized domestic water supply through investment in water supply works, especially in areas with frequent droughts, highlands and areas with special difficulties. This model both solves immediate needs and creates long-term infrastructure for people to feel secure in production and stabilize their lives.

In Khau Cuom village, Vinh Thong commune, the centralized water supply project invested by the State has changed people's lives.

Mr. Hoang Huu Tiep, a resident, shared that since the water pipeline has been installed, his family's life has become much more convenient. Previously, he had to use water from streams, which was potentially unsanitary, but now he only needs to turn on the tap to have water to use, fully meeting his daily needs. The fear of disease caused by polluted water sources has also gradually receded.

Currently, Khau Cuom village has 75 households, 100% of whom have access to clean water. In order for the project to operate stably and effectively in the long term, the village has established a water management team with the task of checking, performing periodic maintenance, troubleshooting and raising public awareness.

Mr. Nong Duc Xuyen, a member of the Management Team, said: “We regularly check the system to avoid interruptions, and at the same time encourage people to save and keep water sources clean.” It is this consensus that has helped the project become not only an infrastructure for daily life, but also a testament to the spirit of self-management and community cohesion.

Thanks to support policies, many households in Thuong Minh commune have now escaped the situation of being completely dependent on rainwater or streams.

The family of Ms. Trieu Thi Nhi, Phieng Phang village, Thuong Minh commune, was supported with stainless steel tanks to store water, serving the family's daily living needs.

The family of Mrs. Trieu Thi Nhi, Phieng Phang village, used to use buckets, basins, and plastic cans to collect rainwater, and bring water from the stream. The water source was both scarce and unsafe. Now, the family has stainless steel tanks to store enough safe water for daily use.

Ms. Trieu Thi Nhi shared: Water contained in stainless steel tanks is much safer than the previous plastic cans. Cooking, bathing, and daily hygiene are also convenient, ensuring the health of the whole family.

Not only Trang Xa, Vinh Thong or Thuong Minh, but many other highland communes of Thai Nguyen are also gradually changing their appearance thanks to water supply projects. Cool water taps right in the yard have relieved the hardships of the people for generations, at the same time opening up opportunities to improve living conditions, especially for women and children, who used to have to carry the burden of fetching water far from home.

Investing in construction, improving quality of life

From the resources of programs and projects, Thai Nguyen has prioritized funding for the construction, maintenance and repair of centralized water supply works, and support for water tanks and decentralized domestic water for ethnic minorities. In the period of 2021-2025 alone, from the capital of Program 1719, the province has built 98 centralized water supply works serving 8,649 households and supported decentralized domestic water for 7,849 households. These works have made an important contribution to helping people have a source of clean water, improving the quality of life.

The significance of the projects is not only to solve immediate needs, but also an important step in the process of completing the criteria of "Environment and food safety" under the New Rural Development Program. When there is a guaranteed water source, people feel more secure in their daily lives and have conditions to develop livestock and crop farming in a safe direction, associated with sustainable agricultural production.

According to the leader of the Department of Ethnic Minorities and Religions, along with policies to support economic development for poor, near-poor and ethnic minority households, investment in centralized and decentralized water supply systems has helped people access clean water sources. Thereby, the quality of life is improved, public health is protected, and social security in the highlands is also maintained.

The relevant departments and agencies in the province have clearly identified that providing clean water for daily life is not only a welfare goal but also a political task associated with sustainable development. The province has implemented many synchronous solutions.

In areas with centralized water supply systems, the province directs the increase of capacity, expansion of the network, and renovation of works without treatment systems to ensure water quality. In areas without water supply works, the province continues to invest in new systems with stable capacity, and at the same time builds mechanisms and policies to attract social resources so that the works after investment can be exploited effectively and sustainably.

The important thing is that when the projects are put into use, they are associated with specific management and operation mechanisms, with community participation. People are both beneficiaries and direct subjects in protecting and maintaining the projects. This is the factor that creates sustainability, overcoming the situation of "investing and then leaving it there" that existed in some places before.

It can be seen that the attention to investment in domestic water supply has created a clear change from lifestyle, activities to environmental quality in many highland villages. No longer lacking water or completely dependent on streams, ethnic minorities in Thai Nguyen are gradually approaching safer and more sustainable living conditions...

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/xa-hoi/202509/nuoc-sach-ve-voi-vung-cao-4e741fb/