The expansion of Kenh Lo Ngang road helps students go to school safely. (Photo: VOV)

Kenh Lo Ngang road used to be a pathway less than 2m wide. It was dusty on sunny days and muddy on rainy days, making travel difficult.

When the district administration announced it was upgrading the road, Nguyen Van Thoi, a villager in Vinh Dai commune, voluntarily donated 1.1 ha of his family’s land, which was being used to grow rice and fruit trees.

“In an area often hit by floods like this one, life is very hard without roads and bridges. That’s why, when the Party and State asked locals to participate in a road improvement program, I took the lead. Thanks to the new road, local people, including my family find it easier to travel and transport farm produce,” Thoi said.

Many other families followed suit. Land donations to build Kenh Lo Ngang road were numerous.

To widen the 9km of roads passing through Vinh Dai commune, villagers donated more than 6 ha of land.

Dao Hong An of of Vinh Hung hamlet  (Photo: VOV)

Dao Hong An of Vinh Hung hamlet said the villagers were willing to contribute land without compensation because they understood the long-term benefits.

He said, “The locals are the ones who have directly benefited from the road improvement. That’s why the villagers have unanimously embraced the Party and State’s plans. Some villagers of Vinh Dai commune even voluntarily contributed 2ha of land for the roads.”

Kenh Lo Ngang road, more than 11km long and 5.5m wide, has been entirely paved with macadam.

It connects Vinh Dai commune with other communes in Tan Hung district and connects Tan Hung district with Thap Muoi district in Dong Thap province.

Two 13-ton reinforced concrete bridges have been built along the route, which also connects to Long An and Tien Giang, cutting in half the travel time from the border area of Tan Hung to My Tho city in Tien Giang province.

Local students can now ride their bicycles to school. Trucks can go to the hamlet and to people's houses to collect agricultural products.

Tran Van Chanh, chief of Vinh Buu hamlet, said, “Leaders of communes and districts have helped propagate Party and State policies on economic, production, and agricultural development at the grassroots level, eliciting strong support from the locals. The road building was completed quickly, which made the villagers very happy.”