As many as 30 cows were given to poor households in Tam Thanh commune, Quan Son district, in the northern central province Thanh Hoa on October 31.

The donation is part of the programme “Join hands for the community – Donate cows to the poor in border areas” in coordination with the provincial Viettel branch.

Every time a new subscriber signs a contract with Viettel, the telecom service provider will donate 1 million VND (47 USD) to the programme. The company also gives each household that receives a cow a mobile phone and SIM card.

Around 110 households in the province have received cows to date. The programme expects to benefit 200 more by the end of 2014 in order to increase livestock breeding and economic development in poor rural communes.

The programme is supported by the Border Guard High Command, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, the Vietnam Red Cross, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the State Bank of Vietnam, the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies, the Military Telecom Group Viettel and the People’s Committees of eleven border provinces throughout the country.-VNA