(HBO) - The life of people in Van Son commune (Tan Lac district) are changing day by day thanks to all-out efforts of the local authority and greater investment in infrastructure, agricultural development and community-based tourism.

A community-based tourism village in Chien hamlet in Van Son commune (Tan Lac district). The natural beauty and unique traditional cultural identities of the locality have attracted many tourists.

The community tourism village in Chien hamlet is located about 4 km away from the centre of Van Son commune at an altitude of around 800m above sea level. The village covers an area of 487 hectares, consisting of 74 households with 347 residents, who mainly make living by agricultural production such as rice cultivation and raising livestock and poultry. Ancient pomelo gardens in Van Son commune are the highlight in the locality.

In addition to the traditional stilt houses of the Muong ethnic people which have been preserved almost intact, the tradition of wearing traditional costumes of people in Chien hamlet have been also restored.

Thanks to its unique cultural identity and potential in terms of geography and human resources, since 2019, the locality was funded by the Australian Foundation for the Peoples of Asia and the Pacific Limited(AFAP) to implement a project on improving sustainable livelihoods through community-based tourism development. The project benefits three households in the commune, helping them develop homestay models to provide accommodation services for tourists.

Ha Van Than, owner of Hai Than Homestay, said his family welcomes about 100 visitors per month. Sixty out of 74 households in Chien hamlet have joined community-based tourism activities in the locality.

The community-based tourism model in Chien hamlet has proven effective, attracting numerous foreign and domestic tourists. Visitors to the hamlet love to join the traditional dance and music performance programmes of the Muong ethnic people, enjoy local foods, and visit beautiful landscapes in the locality.

Van Son used to be called Muong Cham. Later, people also called it poetic names such as Thung May or Lung May. This is also one of the oldest and largest cultural cradles of the Muong ethnic group in Hoa Binh. Van Son commune is also home to many natural landscapes, including Nam Son and Nui Kien caves.

Nam Son cave is located in the buffer areas of Cuc Phuong National Park and Ngoc Son - Ngo Luong Nature Reserve. It was recognised as a national landscape relic in 2008. Meanwhile, Nui Kien cave was recognised as a provincial scenic spot in 2019.

According to Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Van Son commune Ha Van Ha, Van Son has a natural area of 5,553 ha. Agricultural and forestry production is the strength of the commune. Many households have gradually changed their land for growing crops to growing tangerines. The total area of tangerine cultivation in the locality increased more than three times to 181.5 ha from only over 50ha in 2015, contributing to improving incomes for local residents.

In terms of cultivation, the total cultivated area reached over 1,400 ha, including 290ha of rice, and over 900 ha of maize. Total output of grain crops reaches over 5,900 tonnes. Other crops are chayote (21.5 ha), sweet mandarin (183.3 ha) and peach (43 ha).

In addition to farming, local residents have also focused on developing the animal husbandryindustry. They maintained 452 heads of buffaloes, 1,983 cow heads, 1,650 pigs, 200 goats and 52,300 heads of poultry.

Policies towards ethnic minorities are well implemented through projects and national target programme, contributing to gradually improving and raising the living standards of local people. In 2022, the commune's average per capita income reached 28.5 million VND. The rate of poor households stood at 29.72%./.

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