Mr. Ngo Van Lieu, a person with a disability (PWD) is the bread-winner for a family of six in Vinh An village, Phong Binh commune, Phong Dien district. He was born in 1961. Unfortunately, his right hand and half of his left hand was burnt in a phosphorus accident during the war time, when he was less than 10 years old. Working harder than many others at school and in life, he has now grown up and got married to a woman in the village. They had three boys who all studied well at school and received a lot of merit certificates to hang on the wall at home, causing great joy despite the fact that their family conditions are much more difficult than others in their village. His wife is also a PWD, who lost her right eye ten years ago after an illness treatment. The couple are also caring for Mr. Lieu's father who is now 91 years old.

Mr. Ngo Van Lieu

Though they are a poor household, they have realized that they should not rely on support from outside, but need to be independant. "Support is given just when we are in need but it cannot last forever", Mr. Lieu said when we asked him where he sourced his investment for raising two sow and six pigs for meat, and 200 ducks per litter and a flock of chickens. "I have a poverty card so if I need money, I can get a loan from a bank but I have to pay interest. Luckily, in 2010 with SRD's project on Supporting People with Disabilities, I had the great opportunity of a loan of from 3-5 million dong from the Self Help Group's Livelihood Fund, which has a low interest rate. I was also able to attend some training courses in animal husbandry techniques. My three kids study quite well and they want to pursue their studying. My life is so hard already and I do not want my kids to suffer like me".

Mr. Lieu shared these comments with SRD staff  the days after the Lunar Tet at his home as he was showing us their new pigsty, where he raises sows during flooded season from September to December annually. According to his wife, 2010 was a very fruitful year for their family as they earned more than 30 million dong, of which profit is about 10-12 million dong from sow, piglets, pig for meat, ducks, chickens and eggs from ducks and chickens. They have seven saos of paddy rice (one sao equals approximately 350 sqm), and from this they harvested four tons of rice after two crops. "We harvest enough rice for our family and for husbandry", his wife said. "We have rice to eat, rice to feed the livestock. Ducks and chickens give eggs for us to eat and sell everyday while the pigs provide us their dung to make organic fertilizer for our field and sows deliver piglets for us to sell and to raise. So, we have money from different sources in our houses to afford school for our children who are our tomorrow".

2011 has brought with it a spring with new hope. We know that Mr. Lieu and his wife are building a better and brighter future for not only their sons but themselves, through their hard work and determination.