A publication based on MCNV’s works in Nong District (Savannakhet, Laos) give insights on the availability of nutrition for mothers and children under the age of two.
By: Sayvisene Boulom MSc; PhD Candidate2 ; Kokasia Nengmongvang. MD1; and Viengnakhone Vongxay MD; MPH; PhD Candidate1
1.Faculty of Public Health, University of Health Sciences, Lao PDR
2.Faculty of Agriculture, National University of Laos
Corresponding Author: viengnakhone_poom@yahoo.com
[Inclusion Project] 9-Month Occupational Therapy Course organized by MCNV in coordination with Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy (May 2022 – Feb 2023).
Background
Located in the Southwest border of Vietnam, Dien Bien province has a population of nearly 550,000. According to a statistical research conducted in 2018, the number of children with disability in the province is over 3,000 (age 0-18), of which 643 kids have never been to school (21%), 773 have dropped out (24%). The rest of the children are going to local schools (from preschool to high school level), accounting for 55%.
What we are doing?
What we’ve achieved so far?
At the end of the 2021-2022 school year, 17/90 students were qualified to attend mainstream schools.
Currently, MCNV is continuing to assist the Center as well as the Dien Bien province on providing capacity-building on early detection, early intervention and early education.
Background:
Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) is a specialty of applied science, which works to provide treatment, support and care for clients with speech, communication and swallowing impairment/disorders.
These disorders can be associated with conditions such as autism, cerebral palsy, intellectual disability, traumatic brain injury, stroke, Parkinson, cleft lips and cleft palate, head-neck cancer, etc.
Inability to speak, slurred speech, stuttering, articulation errors, etc, vastly hinder communication, negatively affect the quality of life, limiting social inclusion, access to education and career development.
SALT got recognition nearly 100 years ago since the formation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) in 1926. Nowadays, SALT has been widely practiced in Europe, Australia and developed countries, territories in other regions. However, in Vietnam, SALT has only been present for around 10 years since the commencement of SALT short-term training conducted in several medical universities (Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine, Hanoi Medical University, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy).
SALT services in Vietnam has been in high demand. According to the National Survey on People with Disabilities conducted in 2016, over 7 per cent of the population aged 2 years and older, – around 6.2 million, have a disability (mobility, hearing, sight, mental disorder, etc).
Despite the absence of official statistical data on the number of people needing SALT, according to the research ‘Disability in Vietnam 1999: A Meta-analysis of the Data” (Kane, 1999), 17%-27% of persons with disabilities in Vietnam have difficulties with speech and language.
However, due to the lack of manpower, this need remains unmet. According to the “Surveying the Demand for SALT education in Vietnam” conducted by MCNV in 2018, by late 2017, there were only 65 people who were trained and basically qualified to provide SALT services in the country.
Aiming to support Vietnam to address this need, a project titled “Speech and Language Therapy Education Development in Vietnam” was rolled out. Implemented in 5 year (2018-2022), the project is funded by USAID Vietnam via VietHealth, dedicating to lay a foundation for Vietnam’s first university-based SALT programs, including a Master course at UMP HCMC and a Bachelor course at Da Nang UMTP. Trinh Foundation Australia (TFA) participates in the project as a technical consulting partner,
The project aims at establishing a solid foundation for development of an official education system of Speech and Language Therapy profession in Vietnam
What we’ve achieved so far:
In over the past five years, SALT project has successfully achieved its key goals, with the completion of Vietnam’s first Masters and Bachelors of SALT, conducted in coordination with HCM University of Medicine and Pharmacy (UMP HCM) and Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy (DUMPT) respectively.
In over the past five years, SALT project has successfully achieved its key goals, with the completion of Vietnam’s first Masters and Bachelors of SALT, conducted in coordination with HCM University of Medicine and Pharmacy (UMP HCM) and Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy (DUMPT) respectively.
The two MSALT and BSALT courses cover all the SALT scopes following international education in SALT, including assessment, diagnosis, habilitation, rehabilitation, counseling, and prevention services for individuals from birth through old age who have some type of speech, voice, language, fluency, cognitive-communicative, or swallowing problems due to delayed development or as a result of an injury, cancer, stroke or progressive neurological disease. The MSALT was for 2 years and the BSALT was for 4 years. Due to the shortage of qualified Vietnamese SALT trainers, most of the trainers are from overseas (Australia, the UK, US, New Zealand).
With the completion of the MSALT and BSALT courses, the Project has supported four Medical Universities which are UMP HCMC, DUMPT, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy (Hue UMP) and Hai Duong Medical Technical University (HMTU) on capacity building for SALT trainers and BSALT, MSALT curriculum development.
As a part of the Project, a network of national and international SALT academics, practitioners and clinical sites were established to support the development of SALT in Vietnam in terms of education and services.
Concurrently, the awareness of SALT among rehabilitation professionals and the public has been vastly improved, thanks to the frequent maintenance and updates of a SALT website (http://speechtherapyvn.net/) and a Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ngonngutrilieu.mcnv).
What we are doing right now?
MCNV is currently continuing to supporting UMP HCMC, DUMPT and HMTU in training the ongoing and several upcoming cohorts of SALT Bachelor and Master students.
Rehabilitation has been developed in Vietnam for more than 40 years; it is still a big gap of Occupational Therapy (OT) development. The main rehabilitation practice in Vietnam is Physical Therapy (PT), yet there are currently no qualified occupational therapists in Vietnam. OT services are provided by physiotherapists with minimal clinical training in OT, or by occupational therapists from other countries who come for short periods. It is only available in a few large hospitals.
Specific OT services were unavailable for mental rehabilitation, elder care, home-based care, school-based services for children with special needs, etc. The faculty (PT and Rehabilitation doctors) may not be well-equipped to teach OT in depth, due to lack of experience, equipment, and resources, limited information from books, especially those written in English. In addition to the lack of qualified OT doctors, those qualified with Masters to teach OT are not available in Vietnam. The participants of OT training survey were of the unanimous opinion that OT education needs to be commenced in Vietnam.
Being aware of the fact that OT is essential to provide comprehensive rehabilitation services, the Ministry of Health (MOH)’s orientation of rehabilitation development up to year 2020 stated that OT is one of specialized fields in rehabilitation. It is obligatory to establish Occupational Therapy Departments in Rehabilitation Hospitals as well as Provincial General Hospitals.
In October 2015, MCNV received a fund from USAID to run a 5 – year project of OT training development in Vietnam. The project’s goal is to create the foundation and necessary conditions in order to develop the training system of professional OT in Vietnam, including the provision of OT trainers, competency-based training curriculum and OT-related policies. Specific objective of this project as follows:
To implement this project in the context of having no OT experts and trainers, MCNV already approached the Manipal College of Health Professions, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (India) to ask for technical support during the project implementation. Two universities in Vietnam were involved in this project including Hai Duong Medical Technical University (HMTU) and University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ho Chi Minh City (UMP HCMC). The project has also received strong supports from Administration of Medical Service and Administration of Science Technology and Training, MoH.
After almost one year conducting the project, the following results have been achieved:
This project aims to contribute to strengthening the position of fruit growers in four vulnerable provinces in Vietnam, based on sustainable production and distribution practices, market-oriented output and long-term domestic and international market positions, enabling sustainable economic growth and employment opportunities. In this approach, improving the quality of fruit is central. This project is part of the strategy of the Dutch Embassy in Vietnam regarding sustainable agricultural transformation in the Mekong Delta.
From 3rd to 8th of March, an event titled “Fruit Tech Innovation Days” (Ngày Công nghệ Trái cây Sáng tạo)” were organized in 4 provinces with more than 500 participants including advance farmers, cooperatives and companies, local authorities and expert in agricultural sector.
The event was launched as part of the “Improve Vietnam Tropical Fruits” project implemented by MCNV, the Vietnam Farmers’ Union under the support of the Netherlands government, technical and financial contribution from a consortium of EU and Vietnamese companies.
The key objectives of this project are improving cultivation techniques of dragon fruit, mango and pomelo farmers in Đồng Tháp, Long An, Bến Tre and Binh Thuận provinces and at the same time, support the SMEs and cooperatives in fruit sector to access to EU market.
The event provided a platform for the experts from Hollands, Vietnam Reseach Institutes and Companies to exchange their knowledge and information with farmers, export companies and cooperatives to find the best ways to improve cultivation practices and access to EU market for tropical fruits.
Eurofins Vietnam provides soil test service which help farmers deeply understand their own soil content so that they could adjust the use of fertilisers and water to best fit with what their crop needs. Yara Vietnam and Bayer Vietnam provide fertilizer and crop protection demo and trainings for farmers which help them save the production inputs and avoid the overuse thus lead to high residues in products in the market. Khang Thinh company introduce water saving irrigation solution which is specially suitable for farmers who cultivate in dry and saline-intrusive area.
Also at the event, ten potential local exporters have been selected for coming in-depth trainings which are aimed to help the trainees be prepared for accessing to EU and high-demand markets.
In the year 2022, project organized 13 technical training for more than 150 farmers and technical staff from related departments. There were 5 demo farms built with the supports from technical parners in 4 provinces.
Speaking at the event, Mr. Peter Prins, the chief technical adviser of the project shared: “Vietnamese farmers are very keen to gain more knowledge on soil management, fertilization and crop protection. In the past farmers tend to use more fertilizers, water or crop protection agents then required by the crop. However, overuse of input has a negative impact on the quality of the crops, for instance in terms of shelf life or the contamination with residues of chemical substances. With our project we show that less is better. At the end of the day the income of the farmers will be higher, by savings on inputs and better prices. It is our goal to strengthen the export position of the Vietnamese farmers”.
“With regard to Dutch business community, I want to encourage them to invest in collaboration with Vietnamese businesses and to strengthen the economic relationships between companies in both countries. It is my sincere wish to contribute to development of agriculture in Vietnam”.
Vietnam Farmers Union and farmers highly appreciate the changes and benefits that resulted from this project. Farmers, local cooperatives and exporters look forward to coming collaboration and support from this project to help them produce better products that could be exported to EU and high-demand market in the near future./.
Aiming to tackle the new challenges confronting people of ethnic minorities living in remote mountainous areas, brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change. In particular, BIJPO will focus on boosting their income, improving food security via the improvement of working condition and agricultural production.
Fifteen new women-led cooperatives will be formally established and receive support in terms of making joint business plan and building joint assets/facilities for its production and business. At the same time, the project will facilitate 30 household agricultural production groups. These informal groups will be set up and endorsed by local commune government.
Participants at the closing ceremony of the PT and SALT courses.
Congratulations to 89 health providers from 05 Central and Central Highland provinces who have just completed three 9-month rehabilitation courses, specializing in Physical Therapy (PT), Speech and Language Therapy (SALT), Occupational Therapy (OT).
✅The number of trainees graduated from each course:
🔰PT: 25
🔰 SALT: 28
🔰OT: 36
The three aforementioned courses were jointly organized by MCNV, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy and Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy.
The training activities were conducted as part of Inclusion 1 & 2 project, sponsored by USAID via the CCIHP (Center for Creative Initiatives in Health and Population) and CCRD (Center for Community Health Research and Development). Inclusion project is owned by the National Action Centre for Toxic Chemicals and Environmental Treatment (NACCET).
After finishing the rehabilitation courses, 89 health providers will come back to their respective provincial hospitals/district health centers and apply what they’ve acquired to improving the quality of rehabilitation services provided to persons with disabilities./.
On February 10, 2023, the Association of Smallholder Forest Certification Groups of Quang Tri (SFCG) and MCNV jointly held a closing workshop for the project “Promoting sustainable partnerships between CSOs and enterprises for sustainable forestry management in the context of climate change” (PROSPER project) co-funded by the European Union and MCNV.
After three years of implementation, PROSPER project has achieved a number of significant outcomes that profoundly impact the implementation of sustainable forestry development plan of Quang Tri province.
The Quang Tri SFCG Association, consisting of 43 member units and community groups are deeply involved in the process of reducing emissions and paying for forest environmental services. With about 2,880 hectares of FSC® certified acacia plantations, annually the Association’s member units directly contribute to emissions reduction through changes in silviculture techniques of forest owners. The Quang Tri SFCG Association is also the first association of this model in Vietnam that has linked member units of planted forests and community-managed natural forests to participate in the FSC certification system.
Thanks to PROSPER project, 2,145 hectares of natural forests of five member units in the mountainous area, which contribute to sequestrating 7,000 tons of CO2 annually, were granted FSC certification for ecosystem services.
With over 5,000 hectares of acacia plantations and natural forests certified with FSC, more than 3,700 farmers from lowland and upland communities, smallholder groups and cooperatives have participated in supplying raw materials to the FSC market, including acacia wood and non-timber forest products such as bamboo, tung seeds, black locust and dried bamboo-shoots.
Quang Tri province has approved the Plan 237/KH-UBND on the development of production associated with processing and consumption of tung oil in the period of 2023 – 2026 with a vision to 2030, with the target of producing about 4,000 tons of tung seeds, equivalent to a commercial value of about 50 billion VND per year for farmers in the mountainous areas.
Five SFCG Association’s member units in the mountainous areas are approaching the voluntary payment for 7,000 tons of CO2 with a rate of 10 Euros for one ton of CO2, totally equivalent to about 1.5 billion VND per year. This model can be replicated to create opportunities for communities managing natural forests to better perform their tasks in emission reduction and forest development.
With an output of about 30,000 tons of FSC-certified bamboo, Quang Tri province has the opportunity to create a raw material area for WWS enterprise to produce about 10,000 tons of bamboo biochar per year. This will create a commercial value of about VND 50 billion for farmers and contribute to the long-term sequestration of 20,000 tons of CO2 annually in the form of biochar.
The community-based tourism model based on community-managed natural forests certified with FSC for ecosystem services opens up opportunities for community livelihood development associated with sustainable forest management. The initial results have contributed to Resolution No. 02-NQ/HU on conservation and promotion of cultural values of ethnic minorities in Huong Hoa district.
In his opening speech, MCNV Vietnam Country Director, Mr.Pham Dung said: The PROSPER project represents an effort of MCNV in expanding the organization’s assistance for Quang Tri, one of the organization’s strategic partners, to the field of climate change response.
Mr.Pham Dung highlighted PROSPER as a key project of MCNV, in the context of increasing replication of forest smallholders FSC certification in various localities. This is a model which has been pioneered by Quang Tri, in order to effectively implement the Government’s policy on land and forests allocation to the community for management.
On this occation, MCNV Country Director expressed sincere thank to EU, Quang Tri SFCG Association, Quang Tri Provincial People’s Committee, People’s Committee of Huong Hoa district and other participating districts and communes; management agencies such as the provincial Department of Agriculture and and Rural Development, the provincial police force and border guards; the Department of Foreign Affairs; the Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs, Forest Management Board, fellow NGOs such as WWF, enterprises.
He especially appreciated the participation of forests smallholders, groups, families and individuals for their excellent contribution to PROSPER project! “Your participation is the critical factor that decides the success of the project!” he said.
Speaking at the workshop, Mr.Pham Trong Ho, Vice Chairman of Huong Hoa district’s People’s Committee, expressed his appreciation for MCNV’s unwavering support for the people of Quang Tri in 55 years.
He emphasized that despite being implemented in a short period of time, PROSPER has generated breakthrough outcomes for Huong Hoa district, paving a new path in the field of community forest management, livelihood development for mountainous communities, development of planted forests along with protection forests and especially contributing to carbon emission reduction.
“We think that PROSPER has generated models that worth replicating via incorporating into national target programs, as well as mobilizing resources from development projects and enterprises working in the provinces”, he said.
Quang Tri has been a pioneering province in engaging smallholders in SFM and FSC. In 2014, the Quang Tri Smallholder Forest Certification Group (SFCG) Association became the first smallholder in Vietnam that was recognized as a legal entity and certified for FSC.
PROSPER project was co-funded by the European Union (EU) and MCNV with total value of EUR 800,000 (USD 898,000), February 2020 – February 2023 period, aiming to promote sustainable partnership between CSOs and enterprises for sustainable forest management in the context of climate change.
In Vietnam, sustainable forest management (SFM) and forest certification (FSC) are two among five areas of the global and national Action Plan of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+).
Sustainable management of natural resources in the context of climate change requires good governance and commitment of local communities to engaging in environmentally responsible plans for land and forest use./.
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