VIETNAM: Rubber company helps central region farmers

The Dak Lak Rubber Company has been working closely

with farmers in the Central Highlands provinces of Dak

Lak and Dak Nong to enhance their incomes by offering

training and land.

Established in 1989, Dakruko oversees 15,000 ha of

rubber trees under cultivation, and has 18 affiliates,

including farms, processing factories and research

centres.

Because of the company’s strong support of the

farmers, average annual incomes have risen sharply.

New roads, medical clinics and schools have all been

built in recent years thanks to the contributions of

Dacruko and the farmers who work on its rubber

plantations.

Dakruko’s director Huynh Van Khiet said the company

motto was "be ready to unite with and support local

farmers."

Turnover in 2006 climbed to VND495 billion (US$31

million) and reached VND460 billion in the first nine

months of last year.

Success, however, depended on understanding farmers

well, Khiet said.

"Before we decided to develop rubber plantations, we

did research on farmers’ abilities, education and

financial conditions," he said.

"We divided them into three groups, with the first

including farmer households who already have capital

and are capable of setting up a rubber plantation," he

said.

"In this model, each household is allotted 10 to 50

ha, and we will contribute 70 per cent of the needed

capital and teach them farming techniques."

As a result, more than 1,100 farmer households, most

of them ethnic minorities, now have a high income.

Farmer Ama Ben in Dak Lak’s Krong Buk District says

his family was given more than 80 ha by Dakruco to set

up a rubber tree farm, and now earns around VND200

million (US$15,000) monthly.

"My farm also provides jobs for 50 other farmers," Ama

Ben added.

Khiet said that farmers with modest capital and little

technical know-how were in the second group, who are

given three to five ha as well as financial and

technical support to cultivate trees.

The third group includes farmers without capital and

little knowledge about farming techniques, who also

lack production and organisation skills. They receive

between 1.7 and 2 ha to work on the rubber

plantations.

"The most significant thing is that Dakruco has helped

local rubber tree growers to market all of their

products," Khiet said.

In 2005, Dakruco expanded the programme to Laos, which

has soil and climate similar to Viet Nam.

Since then it has helped set up areas to cultivate

rubber and other crops on 6,000 ha in Laos, though the

plan originally called for 10,000 ha.

Khiet said the company’s development strategy to 2020

was to increase its capital to VND 800 billion

($50million).

Dakruco also plans to build several major factories

that will process raw materials from rubber trees and

other industrial crops.

(Syed Rashid Ali, Karachi, Pakistan)