Empowering Family in Rural Area through Support for Income Generating Activity and Children's Education

Poverty prevents many children in Vietnam from continuing their education beyond primary school. Many children have to find jobs and earn a living, instead. Furthermore, those who have worked so hard to pass competitive national entrance exams into universities cannot attend due to limited finances. In order to address this, Better Life VIetnam (BLV) has launched a Scholarship Program aiming at empowering family in rural area by helping the children in need who study well at school  to continue going to school and supporting their families to be sustainable through an income generating activity.

We award a variety of scholarship packages with a value of $30 per month to $80 per month  to underprivileged students in rural Vietnam to continue their studies. The amounts indicated are used to cover school expenses (tuition fee and school supplies) for one student for one year. A portion of this will be invested in an income-generating activity for his/her family to improve the family's livelihood.In 2017, Better Life Vietnam has provided five scholarship packages to five children in need of primary school and secondary school.

Here is story of Duong who is one of our scholarship program's candidate.

In the end of 2017, Better Life Vietnam has established a partnership with Hanoi Hilton Opera Hotel. This partnership enable BLV to expand the scholarship program to high school students and also add another important element, the occupational orientation workshop for the students, to the scholarship program. In the beginning of 2018, we have selected six high school students in Phuc Tho, Hanoi to participate in this scholarship program. 

Thanks to the partnership with Hilton hotel and the Sauve Scholar Foundation, we are able to provide the beneficiaries of this scholarship program following benefits: financial support to cover tuition fee in one year; financial support to help their family start an income generating model. The farm products will be bought by Hanoi  Hilton Opera Hotel. The students can also participate in an occupational orientation training workshop that will guide them to work in tourism and hospitality industry. They can also spend two days one night at Hanoi Hilton Opera Hotel while attending the workshop.

Learn more about BLV Scholarship Program and meet some of our scholarship candidates here:

The families has chosen to grow rice. In the second half of 2018, the families received the financial support to grow rice in their own farms. In the end of the season, the families were able to harvest 3 tons of rice. Hilton hotel has also helped purchase their rice at a favorable price for the farmers. This helps the famers to earn more since they don't have to pay for the middle man. While the market price is VND 15,000 per kg, Hilton purchased the rice at VND17,000 per kg. After minus the shipping fee, the families can have VND 15,500 per kg. This is much better than if they had sold to the middle man at VND 12,000 per kg.  

The families prepared rice to be shipped to Hilton Hotel

After the families have successfully carried out the first component of the scholarship program - starting the income generating model, their children now are eligible for the second component of the scholarship program - attending the occupational orientation workshop that will be organized this summer. 

Better Life Vietnam would like to thank to the families and the students for their participation in this scholarship program. We would also like to especially thank to Hilton Hotel and the Jeanne Sauve Foundation for enabling us to carry out this pilot scholarship program targeting high school students.