In my last article I wrote about my visit to Ha’s home, one of the hearing impaired children that Office of Genetic Counselling and Disabled Children has helped. Well in his spare time, Ha works at the Organic Farm for Youngsters with disabilities which is not too far from his home. The farm is located in Nam Dong province in the mountains 70km west of Hue.

It was established by Professor Nguyen Viet Nhan, head of the OGCDC, in July 2016 with the help of Aide Au Vietnam and the government of Luxembourg. It is the first centre in this region for youth with disabilities. In residence, are 20 people aged between 16 and 25 years and 4 teachers.

I visited a lot of schools during my time photographing for the OGCDC that were doing some great things around learning and development of children from toddlers to 10 years old. However, I learnt that it is vitally important to have schools/centres that also cater for young adults. They like all of us get bored and frustrated and need mental stimulation greater than what other special schools can provide.

This organic farm is a great example of that. The farm teaches the young attendees farming practices and other life skills. It gives them hopes and goals at an age where they would be otherwise begging on the streets.

The farm is so effective in what it has set out to achieve that it has created a good problem for itself. The parents of the youths are seeing firsthand their improved development. No longer are they a burden on their family and in some cases parents have been pulled them out so that they can use their new skills at home on the family farm.

The farm grows vegetables and fruit and has livestock – ducks, chickens and pigs (boar). Crops, meat and poultry are all looked after by the young adults, some of whom stay there in dorms. It has been so successful that just recently they proudly told me that they have become self-sufficient, relying on the money made from selling their produce at the markets back in the main city of Hue.

It was great to watch the teenagers going about their duties while laughing and having a good time. They did everything with enthusiasm including cleaning out poo pens. Afterwards they prepped the fresh food and cooked lunch. I got to take home 4 huge grapefruits as a gift, which were absolutely delicious.

It was also plain to see how much the kids bonded with their teachers. Always hugging and smiling. The teachers love the attention also.

It was comforting to know that in this region anyway, children growing up with disabilities, will have a place to go once they become teenagers and will not fall by the wayside or stay isolated at home.

Now that they have a good data and first hand reports, hopefully groups like the OGCDC can provide more of these learning centres throughout the region. For this to occur more awareness and funds will be needed. Hopefully the images I have taken can be used to providing this.

More selected images of the youth at the Organic Farm in the slideshow below.

For more information on the OGCDC, visit their website and learn how you can help.

Take care
Warren