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Published on December 29, 2007

When the tsunami hit, thousands of residents lost their fishing boats and equipment and simply could not earn enough to support their families.

But things began to improve in February 2005 when they started to learn new skills and change their ways of making a living. They also learned how to establish local cooperatives and village banks to provide their communities new sources of employment and start projects to improve their livelihoods.

"We couldn't catch prawns after the tsunami devastated the coastline, so some villagers who used to be fishermen turned to growing rubber trees instead," explained Rohem Udee, chairman of Baan Klong Sai's agricultural cooperative in Krabi's Klong Thom district.

"We have also formed our village bank, and a cooperative and agricultural equipment shop. The bank lends money to villagers at low interest and they can also buy cheap agricultural tools from the shop," he said.

Moreover, the village has set up a furniture centre for villagers - who are also co-investors - to work in the rainy season when they don't collect rubber latex to increase their income.

In addition to Baan Klong Sai, Baan Klong Krai Tai in the same district also has a centre to develop local livelihoods. Local housewives cook curry paste to sell in nearby villages.

"We have also established a fund for villagers to buy fertiliser for their rubber and palm trees and founded a bank to provide money for villagers to borrow as well," said Prawat Thongrod, chairman of the centre.

"Villagers have better quality of life now as they have more sources of earning their livelihood and so their income has increased."

Prawat has also encouraged local youths to make organic fertiliser and to grow vegetables.

The World Bank and the Japan Social Development Fund (JSDF) have given around Bt28 million to support these projects, as well as to the Population and Community Development Association (PDA) who help supervise them.

Apart from those two villages, 64 other villages in Phang Nga and Phuket also receive support from these organisations.

Nittaya Chantaksinopas, head of PDA's Community Based Integrated Rural Development Krabi, said the PDA had been supervising more than 80 projects initiated by the villagers in the 66 provinces since February 2005.

It provided money for them to run the projects and trained them to manage money in the village banks, and how to use computers to improve their money management skills.

"We let local people propose the projects that interested them. Apart from helping them to have better jobs and village banks, we have promoted other projects such as an educational fund for students, empower?ing women's economic affairs, as well as health and sanitation," she said. "The next step is to help villagers to sustain the projects."

Wannapa Phetdee

 The Nation