Small Businesses Think Big

"I'd like my small business to expand and to use new technology, since we do things mainly by hand," says Vu Thi Ha. She owns a factory that makes terracotta pots in Quang Ninh province, in northern Vietnam, with a staff of 10 people. "We would then be more competitive, especially with China, which is a fierce competitor."

Vu Thi Ha would like to put her plans into action, but there are several steps she must take to do this, such as exploring various technologies, developing business and marketing plans, and obtaining a bank loan.

These procedures take time and energy. So to jump-start her enterprise, she signed up for a business development course given by the province's Business Development Office (BDO). The course gave her the boost she needed to move ahead. In addition, she met other entrepreneurs in the same situation.

Tran Thi Hien owns a two-star, 22-room hotel near famous Ha Long Bay. She also benefited from a course she took at the BDO. "I learned how to develop a business plan and effectively apply for a bank loan,'' she says. ''I also acquired administrative tools to better manage my day-to-day activities."

Armed with her new knowledge, she then encouraged her employees to take English courses. This improved their ability to serve the hotel's guests, who come mainly from Australia and Europe.

The Quang Ninh BDO began as an Oxfam-Québec project funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Jointly managed by two Vietnamese organizations―the Cooperative Alliance and the Women's Union―, the BDO promotes rural business development. It offers training and advice in such fields as accounting, administration, market studies, marketing, and communications. Two other provinces in northern Vietnam have also established such a BDO to help microbusinesses, and small and medium-sized businesses to expand their activities.

The BDO offers services that allow business owners―the majority of them women―to have confidence in their abilities and explore new opportunities. They can then better adjust to market fluctuations and play an integral role in the economy.

Their employees, their families, and their community also benefit as a result of these services: better-paid employees and improved working conditions pave the way for a higher quality of life.

"My employees have social insurance and health insurance," says Tran Thi Hien. "I have learned that a good work environment brings prosperity."