Vietnam Province Cuts Poverty to 2.7% With New Approach

When Nguyen Huu Thanh's family received a single cow at the end of 2024, they didn't just accept it and move on. They saw an opportunity.

The family in Dong Quan village used that cow as their stepping stone. Thanh quickly learned that cattle required less care and cost than chickens or pigs, so he borrowed money from the Social Policy Bank to buy two more breeding cows. Today, those cows have produced two calves, creating real assets and steady income. His family has escaped poverty completely.

This is exactly what Bac Ninh province had in mind when it redesigned its entire approach to fighting poverty. Instead of just giving money or supplies, the province now provides livestock, teaches skills, offers low-interest loans, and helps people start businesses.

The strategy is working remarkably well. Truong Son commune, a mountainous area home to over 18,600 people from 10 different ethnic groups, has dropped its poverty rate to just 2.7% by the end of 2025. Just a few years ago, that number was much higher.

The secret lies in making people the heroes of their own stories. In Dong Ky commune, 301 poor families have accessed over 22.8 billion Vietnamese dong in preferential loans to start their own ventures. The commune surveys residents annually to find out what skills they actually want to learn, then organizes training courses matched to local industries.

Nguyen Thi Hai from Trai Nhi village took those training courses and didn't stop at personal success. She partnered with 11 other households to create a cooperative that grows and sells chili peppers together. Members share seeds, supplies, and help each other find buyers, creating income stability that one farmer alone couldn't achieve.

In Da Bo village, residents are raising bees under forest canopies. The honey provides income while preserving the natural environment they depend on.

The Ripple Effect

Bac Ninh's success is inspiring a complete rethinking of poverty reduction across Vietnam's mountainous regions. The province is now investing 25 trillion dong through 2030, with 16.5 trillion coming from the provincial budget, to expand these programs to 29 communes and one ward in ethnic minority and mountainous areas.

Over 7,700 households currently classified as poor and another 13,500 near-poor families now have access to the same opportunities that transformed the Thanh and Hai families' lives. The province allocated over 505 billion dong in 2026 alone for infrastructure, training programs, and microloans.

The approach proves that poverty isn't just about lack of money. It's about lack of opportunity, knowledge, and resources. When communities get the right combination of training, capital, and support networks, they don't just survive, they thrive and build businesses that lift entire villages.

Families who once waited for help are now teaching their neighbors how to succeed.