7115-PRA Binh Minh Report 0704

QUANG NGAI RURAL DEVELOPMENT
PROGRAM (RUDEP) - PHASE 2
Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) Report:

Binh Minh Commune, Binh Son District
RUDEP
VIETNAM-AUSTRALIA
Prepared for
AusAID
Australian Embassy
8 Dao Tan Street
Ba Dinh District,
Hanoi, VIET NAM
19 July 2004
42443858
Prepared by
URS Sustainable Development
in association with Kellogg Brown & Root and
World Wide Project Management Services
Project Managers and Consultants
Adelaide Australia
DONOR AGENCY
AusAID
Australian Embassy
8 Dao Tan Street, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi, Viet Nam
Ph: +84 4 8317754/Ext 175 (Project Officer), Fax: +84 4 8317711
LEAD COUNTERPART AGENCY

Department of Planning and Investment
96 Nguyen Nghiem Street, Quang Ngai Town
Quang Ngai Province, Viet Nam
Ph: +84 55 825701
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT UNIT

No 4 Pham Van Dong Street, Quang Ngai Town
Quang Ngai Province, Viet Nam
Ph: +84 55 816261-6, Fax: +84 55 816260
AUSTRALIAN MANAGING CONTRACTOR

URS Sustainable Development
25 North Terrace
Hackney SA 5069
Ph: +61 8 8366 1000, Fax: +61 8 8366 1001
Program ……………………………….. URS Australia Pty Ltd
Manager: Dee Hartvigsen 25 North Terrace, Hackney
International Projects Manager South Australia 5069 Australia
Tel: 61 8 8366 1000
Fax: 61 8 8366 1001
Program ………………………………..
Director: Ted A’Bear
Vice President
Sustainable Development
Date: 19 July 2004

Reference: 42443858
Status: Final
J:\JOBS\42443858\6000 BMS AND DELIVERABLES\6.1 REPORTS\6.1.3 FINAL REPORTS\PRA\PRA BINH MINH REPORT 0704D.DOC
Quang Ngai Rural Development Program (RUDEP) - Phase 2
Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) Report: Binh Minh Commune, Binh Son District i
CONTENTS
Executive Summary ii
1 Introduction 1
2 PRA Tools 2
2.1 Historical Calendars............................................................................... 2
2.2 Village Mapping ..................................................................................... 2
2.3 Linkage Diagrams.................................................................................. 2
2.4 Seasonal Calendars .............................................................................. 2
2.5 Wealth Ranking ..................................................................................... 2
3 Results of PRA Exercises in Binh Minh Commune 3

3.1 Historical Timelines................................................................................ 3
3.2 Village Mapping ..................................................................................... 4
3.3 Seasonal Calendars .............................................................................. 4
3.4 Linkage Diagram.................................................................................... 5
3.5 Wealth Ranking ..................................................................................... 6
4 Conclusion 8
TABLES
Table 1: Common Classes and Characteristics of Wealth/Well-Being in Binh

Minh Commune............................................................................... 6
ANNEXES
Annex 1: Historical Timelines
Annex 2: Seasonal Calendars
Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) Report: Binh Minh Commune, Binh Son District ii
Executive Summary
PRA exercises were conducted in early 2004 in Binh Minh Commune. These exercises
were undertaken to assist RUDEP to gain a better understanding of household resources
and farming systems and is used as a tool to support participatory planning processes.
Five PRA exercises were conducted in the Commune: historical timelines; village
mapping; seasonal calendars; linkage diagrams; and wealth ranking. The exercises
identified opportunities and problems and revealed:
• Historical timelines revealed the impact that natural disasters, particularly floods and
droughts, have had on people. The close proximity of Binh Minh Commune to the Tra
Bong River leaves many households vulnerable to flash flooding. Livelihood Projects
provide an opportunity to mitigate flood damage and develop community resilience to
cope with future floods.
• Seasonal calendars demonstrated that 3-crop rice production systems are associated
with a high prevalence of diseases and pests. Opportunities exist for RUDEP to
support households with IPM and rice cultivation technologies and introduce 2-crop
rice cultivation practices.
• Seasonal calendars revealed that households commonly raise cattle, pigs and chickens.
Diseases are common throughout the calendar year. It is probable that training and
technologies introduced to households covering animal health technologies and
vaccinations for diseases (e.g. Newcastle Disease) will reduce the prevalence of such
diseases.
• Borrowing money for production and cultivation purposes is common shortly after the
Tet Holiday period. Households borrow up to 500,000 VND from either VBARD or
the Women’s Union. RUDEP can support this demand for credit through the
Program’s VSCFs and training activities.
• Linkage diagrams identified strong utilisation of agricultural and livestock by-
products in local farming systems. It is evident though that with increased intensity of
livestock and crop production systems, more effective utilisation of available
resources and by-products will be required and could be support by RUDEP.
• Wealth ranking exercises were conducted in 4 Villages in Binh Minh Commune.
Household participants identified 3 general class of wealth: rich; medium and poor. Of
the 1,378 households ranked, 44 % were considered ‘poor’, 48 % were medium, and 8
% were rich. The proportion of households considered poor in wealth ranking
exercises was higher than the DOLISA poor household figure (12%).
• Poor households were considered those that:
- Live in poor housing conditions;
- Have few productive/household assets;
- Typically lack available household labour;
- Have low income levels;
- Frequently ill; and
- Have many children.
• These results reveal that activities that are targeted towards poor households will need
to take into account their resource constraints. These results will be used identify poor
households that will participate in RUDEP activities to ensure active pro-poor
targeting in the Commune.
Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) Report: Binh Minh Commune, Binh Son District iii
The PRA exercises have provided a foundation for RUDEP to facilitate the application of
participatory planning activities in Binh Minh Commune. The analysed results of these
exercises were fed back to households through Village Planning Meetings. These PRA
exercises will provide a foundation for RUDEP activities to respond to needs of the poor.
PRA will continue to be a tool used to involve households in planning, monitoring and
evaluating RUDEP activities.
Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) Report: Binh Minh Commune, Binh Son District 1
1 Introduction
RUDEP is a 10-year poverty reduction and rural development initiative funded by the
Australian and Vietnamese Governments that aims to generate income for poor
households in Quang Ngai Province. Participatory planning processes are key to
implementing RUDEP activities and involve the active participation of poor households.
Ultimately, PPP activities implemented by RUDEP identify problems faced by poor rural
households and involve these households in developing and implementing activities to
overcome these problems.
PRA exercises are considered an important PPP tool that encourages households to
identify, plan, implement and evaluate activities. Competency profile assessments
identified PRA as being an important skill that staff, particularly RUDEP DDOs, should
possess and would improve ability of the Program to respond to the needs of households
and facilitate PPP. Consequently, training on PRA that included facilitation skills,
conducting different exercises and analysing results was undertaken.
The improved skill levels of RUDEP staff allowed the Program to conduct PRA exercises
in all Communes. A range of PRA exercises were conducted with different groups of
households in Binh Minh Commune (Binh Son District) in 2004. These exercises were
facilitated by the Binh Son District Development Officer and Commune Officials to
develop a greater understanding of household resources, farming systems, production
problems and opportunities.
This report highlights the results of five PRA exercises conducted in Binh Minh
Commune:
• Historical timelines;
• Village mapping;
• Seasonal calendars;
• Linkage Diagrams; and
• Wealth ranking.
The report highlights the main findings and the implications of the results to RUDEP. The
analysed PRA results were importantly fed back to households while conducting
RUDEP’s Village Planning Meetings and provided a foundation for identifying problems
and activities at these meetings. PRA exercises will continue to be used by RUDEP in
Binh Minh Commune as a planning, monitoring and evaluation tool to support
households and facilitate participatory planning processes.
2 PRA Tools
This report highlights five PRA tools that have different uses and applications.
2.1 Historical Calendars

Historical timeline exercises are conducted to highlight trends and key points in the
history of the Commune or Village that households considered had an impact on their
livelihoods – either positively or negatively.
2.2 Village Mapping

Village mapping is a PRA tool used to facilitate understanding and discussion on local
farming systems, physical resources/features and infrastructure considered important by
households.
2.3 Linkage Diagrams

Linkage diagrams are used to investigate local farming systems. They determine the main
crop and livestock varieties cultivated and raised, sources of inputs, sale of products and
the uses of by-products. Linkage diagrams can identify under-utilised resources and assist
farmers to propose solutions to improve local farming systems.
2.4 Seasonal Calendars

Seasonal calendars are conducted to illustrate important activities, problems or resource
changes throughout a calendar year or production cycle. They can investigate community-
based activities, livestock production, cropping and cultivation, weather and climatic
conditions, and expenditure and borrowing.
2.5 Wealth Ranking

Wealth ranking is conducted to allow households to define differing levels of wealth in a
Commune and the households that belong to a particular class of wealth. The
characteristics of each class of wealth are defined. The results of wealth ranking exercises
facilitate an understanding of the characteristics and resources of households of a
particular wealth class, particularly the poor.
3 Results of PRA Exercises in Binh Minh

Commune
This PRA Report compiles the results from the PRA exercises conducted in Binh Minh
Commune. The Report importantly highlights the main findings and the implications of
the results to RUDEP. Diagrams, figures and tables are attached as Annexes and present
the results of the PRA exercises. Five PRA exercises were conducted in Binh Minh
Commune:
• Historical timelines;
• Village mapping;
• Seasonal calendars;
• Linkage diagrams; and
• Wealth ranking.
All PRA exercises were conducted with small groups of households that were identified
by Village/Hamlet leaders and Commune officials. Attention was given to ensure the
representation of women and representative household participated in the exercises. The
PRA exercises were conducted in local people’s houses.
3.1 Historical Timelines

The historical timeline exercise was conducted by 5 men and 5 women in Duc An
Commune. The results of the exercise are presented in Annex 1 and revealed that:
• Households returned and began living in the Commune following the war and lived in
thatched roof houses.
• The period from 1981 to 1990 was associated with the establishment of cooperatives
in which people dedicated much labour and funds to support these and their
livelihoods.
• The local economy and infrastructure improved during the early 1990’s through
improved road and house construction and the implementation of a rubber planting
project supported by the Government.
• A serious flood occurred in 1999 in which 11 people died and many houses, cattle and
chickens were swept away and killed.
• Electricity was introduced to the Village in 2002 with over 60 households receiving
electricity.
• A drought occurred in 2003 in which crops failed and households suffered water and
food shortages.
The results of this exercise reveal that households in Binh Minh Commune are
particularly vulnerable to natural disasters. The Commune borders the Tra Bong River and
lowland households are highly vulnerable to flash flooding. Infrastructure built in the
Commune was also considered to have had major impacts people’s livelihoods.
Livelihood Projects provide opportunities for RUDEP to mitigate flood damage and
develop community coping mechanisms to increase their resilience to natural disasters.
3.2 Village Mapping

Village mapping exercises were conducted by 3 men and 2 women in Nhat Dong Hamlet
in Tan Phuoc Village. Tan Phuoc Village is the only lowland Village and considered the
centre of Binh Minh Commune. A main road runs through the Village linking the
Commune with National Highway No. 1 and the District capital. Sugar cane and rice are
cultivated beside this main road. A Commune Health Centre is located in Nhat Dong
Hamlet. Many of the households live surrounding the sugar cane, maize and paddy fields.
The Hamlet borders the Tra Bong River.
3.3 Seasonal Calendars

Seasonal calendar exercises were conducted by 7 men and 5 women in My Long Village.
These exercises were conducted for rice cultivation, livestock production and
expenditure/borrowing in My Long Village. Diagrammatic representations of the results
of these exercises are attached in Annex 2 of this report.
3.3.1 Rice Cropping

The seasonal calendar for rice production was conducted for 2- and 3-crop rice production
systems. The results revealed that:
• Two crop rice systems are harvested in March and July respectively. Fields are
prepared and rice is sown in April and in mid-October to November.
• Three crop rice systems are harvested in March, July and November respectively.
Fields are prepared and rice is sown in April, August and November to December.
• Three crop rice systems are associated with disease and pest problems. These
commonly occur in April/May and September/October.
This exercise demonstrates that some rice producing households in My Long Village have
yet to adopt the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development’s
development plans and policies. These policies discourage households from producing
three crops of rice per year. This policy was developed to reduce diseases associated with
intensified cropping patterns (3 crop rice systems have much higher prevalence of pest
and disease damage) and reduce vulnerability to crops being destroyed by flooding
associated with the typhoon season. The results of this exercise clearly demonstrated that
households engaged in 3-crop rice production are more susceptible to pest and diseases.
3.3.2 Livestock
The seasonal calendar for livestock production revealed:
• Chickens, pigs and cattle are the most commonly cultivated livestock varieties. Most
livestock are sold in December and January each year when prices are high and money
is needed for Tet Holiday expenses.
• Cattle and pigs are commonly purchased from February to April with pigs fattened
and sold in July. Pigs are then purchased again in August and sold in December and
January.
• Newcastle Disease in chickens is common throughout the year from April to
November.
• Pig disease is common in August to October each year. Pigs suffer diarrhea,
constipation and hog cholera with many pigs dying.
• Cattle disease outbreaks frequently occur from September to November. Cattle suffer
diarrhea and Pasteurellosis.
This exercise demonstrated that epidemic diseases of livestock occur annually. It is

probable that these epidemics would impact heavily on household income. Opportunities
exist for RUDEP to support these livestock producing households through awareness
raising campaigns on the benefits of vaccinating animals. Vaccines exist in Quang Ngai
Province for the diseases raised. It is likely that RUDEP, with support from the Sub-
Department of Animal Health, could support training activities to support vaccination of
animals and training activities to prevent livestock diseases.
3.3.3 Expenditure and Borrowing

The seasonal expenditure and borrowing calendar revealed:
• Many households typically migrate to HCMC for employment and work there for up
to 10 months of the year. Households commonly leave to HCMC in the beginning of
the year (after the Tet Holiday) and return in December.
• Money is borrowed after the Tet Holiday for agricultural and livestock production.
Households explained that loans are obtained from VBARD or the Women’s Union
with loans of 500,000 VND for 6-12 months.
• Expenditure is associated with lunar festivals and events. These are mainly the Tet
Holiday and the 5th Day of the 5th Lunar Month festival.
Seasonal migration to HCMC for employment is common in Binh Minh Commune and is
typical of most lowland Communes in Quang Ngai Province. This consequently leaves
many households with less available household labour. Loans for production purposes are
common in March following the Tet Holiday period. It is probable the RUDEP’s VSCFs
can support this demand for credit through providing small loans for production purposes
and link these activities with cultivation and livestock technologies.
3.4 Linkage Diagram

A linkage diagram exercise was conducted in Tan Phuoc Village with 5 females and 5
males living in Nhat Dong Hamlet. This exercise was conducted to identify resource
flows in common household farming systems in the Village. This linkage diagram
exercise revealed:
• Rice is cultivated for food for people and livestock. Rice straw is used as a feed for
cattle and buffaloes.
• Sugar is sold locally to middlemen that come and purchase the cane directly from
households and transport the products to the Quang Ngai Sugar Company by trucks.
The leaves of the sugar cane are used for feed for cattle.
• Maize is commonly cultivated with the kernels used for food for people and livestock.
The leaves of the maize plants are used for feed for cattle and the stems are used for
cattle shed bedding.
• Manure from pig and cattle production and ash from cooking are used as fertiliser for
crop production.
• Livestock are sold directly at the house with traders coming directly to purchase cattle,
pigs and chickens. Livestock are rarely sold at markets.
• Inputs for crop production (fertiliser, seeds and pesticides) are bought from private
sellers or local markets.
• Many households cultivate vegetables which commonly are used for household
consumption and occasionally for livestock feeds.
This exercise demonstrated that farming systems in the Village are diverse and
households raise a range of crop and livestock varieties. By-products are commonly used
for livestock and crop production. It is evident that opportunities exist to further add value
to agricultural products and increase the use of un-used and under-utilised agricultural by-
products.
3.5 Wealth Ranking

Wealth ranking exercises were conducted in each of the four Villages in Binh Minh
Commune. Three classes of wealth/well-being were identified by households involved in
the wealth ranking activities: rich/well-off; average; and poor and are presented in
Table 1.
Table 1: Common Classes and Characteristics of Wealth/Well-Being in Binh

Minh Commune
Criteria Better-off Medium Poor
Big house (level Small or Thatched
Housing House (level 4b)
4a) House (mud walls)
Motorbike
Television Sometimes a
Household Assets Black and white
Motorbike Bicycle
TV
Stable job Lack labor
Stable and high Medium living No money for
Income Source
income (15-18 mil condition production
VND/year) activities
Sometimes 1 Cow
Livestock 5 – 10 cattle 2 cattle
Children’s University High School

Education Senior High School Secondary School
Loans and Loans from banks
Loan from bank
Borrowing not needed
Many children
Health
Disease and illness
Saving and Savings Average income 5
No savings
Income Own property mil VND/year
106 HHs 663 HHs 609 HHs
No. of Households
(8 %) (48 %) (44 %)
The results of the wealth ranking in Binh Minh Commune revealed that of the 1,378
households ranked in the Commune:
• 106 households (8 %) were considered being ‘rich’ or ‘well-off’;
• 663 households (48 %) were considered being ‘average’ or ‘medium’; and

• 609 households (44 %) were considered being ‘poor’.
Table 1 demonstrates that poor households were those that:

• Live in poor housing conditions;
• Have few productive/household assets;
• Typically lack available household labour;
• Have low income levels;
• Frequently ill; and
• Have many children.
The majority of households in Binh Minh Commune were considered being of ‘average’
and ‘poor’ levels of wealth/well-being; very few households were considered being ‘well-
off/medium’ or ‘rich’. Wealth ranking provided an estimate of 44 % of households in the
Commune being considered as poor. This result is higher than the official DOLISA figure
of poor households in the Commune (12 % poor households).
Wealth ranking exercises will be used effectively in Binh Minh Commune to target poor
households (both poor according to DOLISA criteria and wealth ranking results). The
results will also allow RUDEP to design activities for poor households that respond to
their resource constraints. Wealth ranking will also be used to identify poor households to
participate in VSCFs in order to support poor households to access credit.
4 Conclusion
The results of the PRA activities in Binh Minh Commune revealed many opportunities for
RUDEP to support households to generate income, improve livelihoods and facilitate
participatory planning processes.
• Households commonly raise cattle and pigs; however seasonal calendars reveal that
serious livestock diseases occur and persist at the common times throughout the year
(October – December). Consequently, RUDEP could support households with the
introduction new livestock raising technologies and animal health training.
• Rice is cultivated by most households in Binh Minh Commune. Seasonal calendars
revealed that 2-crop rice production have fewer diseases and pests and would be less
vulnerable to flood damage. RUDEP could therefore support households with
introducing new rice breeds with IPM and rice cultivation technologies that reduce
disease incidence. Opportunities exist to introduce alternative crops (e.g. maize) to
replace the third rice crop.
• Households commonly borrow money for production purposes following the Tet
Holiday period. RUDEP’s VSCFs can support this demand for credit and link such
loans to improved technologies that will assist to increasing household income.
• Wealth ranking exercises revealed that 44 % of households were considered poor.
This figure is in contrast to the 12 % DOLISA poor household figure in the
Commune. It is evident that there are high proportion of households in the Commune
with few household and productive assets and little income. RUDEP will continue to
use these results to design activities appropriate to the resource constraints of poor
households and target poor households to encourage their participation in Program
activities.
Results of the PRA exercises in Binh Minh Commune have provided a foundation for
understanding local farming systems and resources. These results will be used to support
the design of RUDEP activities in Binh Minh. Efforts will be made to increase the use of
PRA exercises to assist in the design, planning, implementation, monitoring and
evaluation of all RUDEP activities.
Annex 1
Historical Timelines
Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) Report: Binh Minh Commune, Binh Son District Annex 1-1
Annex 1: Historical Timelines
Figure 1: Historical Timeline; Duc An Village; Binh Minh Commune
Annex 2
Seasonal Calendars
Annex 2: Seasonal Calendars
Figure 1: Seasonal Rice Cropping Chart; My Long Village; Binh Minh

Commune
Figure 2: Seasonal Livestock Production Chart; My Long Village; Binh Minh

Commune
Figure 3: Seasonal Expenditure and Borrowing Chart; My Long Village;

Hanh Phuoc Commune
Limitations
URS Australia Pty Ltd (URS) has prepared this report for the use of AusAID Quang Ngai Rural
Development Program in accordance with the usual care and thoroughness of the consulting profession. It is
based on generally accepted practices and standards at the time it was prepared. No other warranty,
expressed or implied, is made as to the professional advice included in this report. It is prepared in
accordance with the scope of work and for the purpose outlined in the Program Design Document.
The methodology adopted and sources of information used by URS are outlined in this report. URS has
made no independent verification of this information beyond the agreed scope of works and URS assumes
no responsibility for any inaccuracies or omissions. No indications were found during our investigations that
information contained in this report as provided to URS was false.
This report was prepared during July 2004 and is based on the conditions encountered and information
reviewed at the time of preparation. URS disclaims responsibility for any changes that may have occurred
after this time.
This report should be read in full. No responsibility is accepted for use of any part of this report in any other
context or for any other purpose or by third parties. This report does not purport to give legal advice. Legal
advice can only be given by qualified legal practitioners.

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QUANG NGAI RURAL DEVELOPMENT

PROGRAM (RUDEP) - PHASE 2

Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) Report:

LEAD COUNTERPART AGENCY

PROGRAM MANAGEMENT UNIT

AUSTRALIAN MANAGING CONTRACTOR

Date: 19 July 2004

3 Results of PRA Exercises in Binh Minh Commune 3

Table 1: Common Classes and Characteristics of Wealth/Well-Being in Binh

2.1 Historical Calendars

2.2 Village Mapping

2.3 Linkage Diagrams

2.4 Seasonal Calendars

2.5 Wealth Ranking

3 Results of PRA Exercises in Binh Minh

3.1 Historical Timelines

3.2 Village Mapping

3.3 Seasonal Calendars

3.3.1 Rice Cropping

This exercise demonstrated that epidemic diseases of livestock occur annually. It is

3.3.3 Expenditure and Borrowing

3.4 Linkage Diagram

3.5 Wealth Ranking

Table 1: Common Classes and Characteristics of Wealth/Well-Being in Binh

Children’s University High School

• 663 households (48 %) were considered being ‘average’ or ‘medium’; and

Table 1 demonstrates that poor households were those that:

Annex 1: Historical Timelines

Figure 1: Historical Timeline; Duc An Village; Binh Minh Commune

Annex 2: Seasonal Calendars

Figure 1: Seasonal Rice Cropping Chart; My Long Village; Binh Minh

Figure 2: Seasonal Livestock Production Chart; My Long Village; Binh Minh

Figure 3: Seasonal Expenditure and Borrowing Chart; My Long Village;

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