Quynh rides into a brighter future

Quynh is a 13-year-old girl from the Dao ethnic minority group in Vietnam. With her parents and a younger sister, she lives in Ngan Son, a mountainous district of Bac Kan Province.

Due to the hilly terrain, rice is often planted on terraced paddy fields, and most families here are reliant on agricultural activities to generate household incomes.

Quynh’s parents are no exception. With just 700 square metres of land, they plant rice for food, and grow seasonal tobacco crops for income. When not working on their own fields, they generate additional earnings by working for their neighbours, or by undertaking construction work.

In a place where hills and mountains are predominant, it is not only difficult to develop sustainable livelihoods, but can be difficult to access education.

Quynh’s school is located about 5km from her house, but the steep paths along the hills and through the woods can make her daily journey to school seem much longer.